Cinder-Effing-Rella
by The Kettle Witch
Summary: A Reylo Pretty Woman AU. Kylo Ren is on the verge of striking the biggest deal in his career with Snoke Industries. Worlds collide when he gets lost in London and meets a pretty prostitute called Rey. Modern day AU, there are no Jedi and no force here. This fic has been tweaked and edited slightly post-The Last Jedi.
1. Chapter 1

**A Reylo Pretty Woman AU. I saw someone on Tumblr bemoan the lack of Pretty Woman/Reylo fanfiction and ended up writing this. I'm not sure if it works, let me know. Modern day AU, there are no Jedi and no force here.**

 **Note Added 15/4/18 - I originally posted this fic shortly after TFA but have now tweaked it a bit and done some other minor editing. The story remains more-or-less the same. I just changed the character names back to their original Star Wars form (e.g I originally referred to Kylo Ren as Kyle Renn in this fic. But, in retrospect, it seemed too much like how the anti-Reylos mess with his name, hence the change) and made a couple of minor plot edits.**

* * *

Cinder-Effing-Rella

Chapter 1

Kylo Ren couldn't understand why anyone would consider it a good idea to throw a cocktail party in his honour. Armitage Hux must really hate him. If all went to plan, his time at the London offices of Snoke Industries would be brief and he hoped to be back in New York by the end of the week. The popping of Champagne corks could wait until the most important deal of his career, and indeed, his life had been finalised. He hated these pretentious social events. His British counterpart didn't strike him as the frivolous type, either. But Kylo did note as he glanced around the room, that the majority of the guests were rising stars in their particular fields. Hux had invited CEOs from other leading industries, a selection of ambitious politicians and influential media representatives. It wasn't so much a party as an opportunity to further the business interests of Snoke Industries with lots of pleasant diversions to smooth the way.

Phasma, Hux's Amazonian-looking assistant, appeared. She smoothed back her short platinum blonde hair and thrust a glass, containing a drink which matched the colour of her blood red lipstick, at him. "Ginger bitch?" she said suggestively raising a sleek brow.

Kylo eyed the cocktail with suspicion.

"It's Jägermeister and Schnapps mixed with cranberry juice," Phasma explained.

"It sounds fucking disgusting," he frowned quickly discarding it on a nearby table. "Is everything in place for the meeting tomorrow?"

"Yes, sir," the tall blonde replied. "Skywalker requested it take place in a more informal setting so Mr Hux told me to book a table for dinner at the Restaurante Mon Calamari."

"That's not what we agreed on." Trust his Uncle to want to make things personal, Kylo fumed as he glared daggers in Hux's direction. "Go and tell him, I need to speak to him _now_." His interest in Skytech was business, pure and simple. Since he'd joined Snoke Industries, he had made successful takeover bids on dozens of failing companies. He would be going after this one regardless of any personal family connection.

His ginger-haired associate appeared to be deep in conversation with a bespectacled older man.

"That's the Secretary of State for Defence," Phasma informed him. "If you want SkyTech to be frozen out when the air defence contracts come up for renewal, you'd better let Hux work his magic."

Ren wasn't in the mood to wait. He had the beginnings of a headache, the incessant chattering around him and the sound of clinking glasses wasn't helping. The effects of jet-lag were starting to kick in after his overnight flight from New York. He could never sleep on planes. Business came first and on arrival, he'd gone straight to the London offices of Snoke Industries to check on where Hux was at with the Skywalker deal.

Kylo headed for the door. "Have my driver bring the car around," he ordered.

Phasma threw a panicked glance in her boss's direction. "He's leaving," she mouthed silently as Ren disappeared outside.

Hux broke away from the politician he had been attempting to schmooze and scurried after him with hopes of persuading him to rejoin the party. He caught up to him in the driveway, now a makeshift parking lot.

"Looks like my fucking limo got buried behind all these other cars," Kylo huffed as his chauffeur gave him an apologetic wave. He wouldn't be deterred from leaving and looked around for an escape route. A silver 1960s Aston Martin DB5, exactly like the one James Bond drove in Goldfinger, took pride of place outside the house. Parked away from the others, it was easily accessible. "Whose is that?" He inquired as he stalked towards it.

"Mine, why?" Hux started to get nervous; it was his pride and joy.

"Give me the keys," Kylo demanded. "I've got a bunch of files to get through tonight and I need to prepare for my meeting with Skywalker."

"I'm sure we can get your limo out." Hux frantically gestured to the chauffeur who looked around at the cars blocking him in and shrugged.

Kylo's mood turned darker. "Why the hell did you set up that dinner? You knew I wanted Skywalker to come to the office. I know his mind tricks and he won't get inside my head. I'm no longer that fucking naive kid he used to know."

Desperate to avoid inflaming him any further, Hux reluctantly pulled the car keys from out of his pocket. "You will remember to drive on the right side of the road, won't you?" he fretted. "Do you even know how to get to Mayfair from here?"

"Doesn't it have sat-nav?" Kylo flicked his raven tresses from his eyes as he got behind the wheel of the Aston Martin.

"It's a classic car!" Hux exclaimed with exasperation. "You should wait until we can get the limo out. You will take a wrong turn and get lost in the dark."

"I'll find my way." Kylo had already started the engine. "I'll see you in the office first thing to go over the SkyTech numbers one last time."

The engine roared as he drove away before his redheaded associate could protest any further.

* * *

Rey forgot to change her alarm from the radio setting and so she got rudely awoken by Madonna singing Like a Virgin. She rolled her eyes and groaned but let it play as she reluctantly crawled from under the duvet. Sleep hadn't come easily and she didn't feel anywhere near rested for the task ahead. The final demand letter from the landlord was still on the table where she'd left it. As she made her way from her room to the bathroom, she eyed it with a fresh wave of concern. The recent rent increase along with all the utility and other bills that were overdue meant their outgoings would add up to a lot more than they had incoming that month. With her flatmate temporarily incapacitated due to a broken leg, courtesy of being knocked off his bicycle by a careless driver, she had little choice but to pick up the slack. If they wanted to avoid being kicked out by their landlord and a visit from the bailiffs, she needed to come up with the extra money and fast.

"You in tonight or not, babe?" Finn called from their cosy living room. "I could get us a pizza."

Toothbrush in hand, Rey poked her head around the bathroom door. "I'll be out until late, maybe all night." There was a frothy moustache around her top lip from the toothpaste.

Finn knew what she intended to do. "We'll find the money somehow." He turned his sorrow-filled brown eyes away in shame as he knew their other options were all but exhausted.

"You can't even do any camming with that leg and you don't get the cast off until next week. We've already pretty much burned through all our savings." Rey didn't want him feeling bad. He would do the same for her if their roles were reversed. "I've already called the agency and they can't get me any extra clients until next week. Sheila gave me the name of a friend of hers in Soho. It's only for a few nights and I'll be careful." She disappeared back into the bathroom to finish getting ready.

"I just don't like it, okay," Finn slumped back on their well-worn couch in frustration.

It wasn't the life Rey would have chosen for herself, but it had kept a roof over their heads so far. The harsh lessons she'd learned as an orphan in successive care and foster homes taught her to stop waiting for someone to swoop in and rescue her. She brushed her hair, deciding to leave it down and carefully applied her makeup. Her push-up bra made the best of her small bosom and the skimpy black dress she'd chosen complimented her slim figure. After making sure to fill her handbag with essential supplies, including a wide variety of condoms, she pulled on her knee-high faux-leather boots.

"If you get in any trouble call me, okay?" Her best friend insisted.

Finn loved her more than anything, she knew that. Almost from the first moment they met in a group kid's care home, they'd been inseparable. Rey felt the same way about him. He had been her first real friend and was there for her when no one else gave a damn if she lived or died. The two of them were a family in every way that mattered. She went over to the couch and hugged him tight around the neck, being careful not to smudge her makeup.

"Everything is going to be all right," she said to reassure herself as much as Finn.

He took her hand and pressed a kiss to it. "Take care of yourself, peanut. I love you."

Rey headed for the door, it felt good to matter to someone. She turned back and smiled. "Love you too."

* * *

Grateful for a warm autumn night, Rey made her way through the bustling pub and theatre crowds into the heart of Soho. The neon lights and pulsing music were pulling inebriated punters in like magnets. A well-built guy with breath that smelled of beer and curry propositioned her. She declined, hoping the brothel she was heading for would offer a better class of clientele. Rey knew the chances of that were slim, she wasn't a fool. Her escort work brought mainly businessmen and bored husbands to her looking for a bit of something to spice up their lives. This would bring mostly drunken idiots seeking cheap thrills to end their night out on a high.

Briefly distracted by her unhappy thoughts, Rey didn't notice a car pulling up alongside her. The driver wound the window down and called out to her in a gruff American accent making her jump.

"Can you give me directions to Mayfair?"

"Sorry, what?" she gasped, taking in the appearance of the dark, brooding man behind the wheel. He wasn't what she would call conventionally handsome. However, he had dreamy brown eyes, full sensual lips and a tousled mane of raven hair. Rey smiled; her clients didn't have to be attractive, but it sometimes helped. Mostly, she tried not to think too much about it. Sex for money was a service she provided and it meant nothing to her beyond that.

"Mayfair," the man with the deep voice repeated. "I need to find my hotel."

Kylo had heard about Soho and the kind of girls one could find there if so inclined. He wouldn't ordinarily be interested, his life too ordered and controlled to give into base desires on a whim.

Rey took a moment to appreciate the sight of a classic 1960s Aston Martin DB5 in prime condition. "Great car!" she exclaimed unable to resist reaching out to stroke the bonnet.

Kylo raised his eyebrows as he watched the sweeping motion of her hand. It wasn't as if he'd gone in search of sex with a stranger, but the pretty brunette was putting ideas in his head. "You wanna see how it feels from the inside?" he asked, enticing her with his smouldering gaze.

Getting into a stranger's car wasn't something Rey ever took lightly. But she'd potentially struck gold with this guy, and so she slipped into the passenger seat. "I can definitely get you to Mayfair or anywhere else you want to go," she vowed with a seductive smile.

Kylo had never picked up a prostitute in his life. But this girl - there was something about her.

"Take a left at the end of the street," Rey instructed in an urgent tone. She had been savouring the feel of the buttery leather upholstery and almost missed the turning.

The man driving the car did as she commanded, attempting to keep his attention on the road. "What's your name?" He asked as he pulled up at the lights.

Rey turned to him with mischief dancing in her hazel eyes. "What would you like it to be?"

He threw her a look of exasperation, clearly not in the mood to play games.

"My name is Rey, with an E," she answered, sensing danger in his dark features and wondering if she'd made a mistake in getting into his car.

Her eyes roved over his well-toned body. His charcoal designer suit, shirt, silk tie and black leather shoes probably cost more than she could earn in six months or more. The inequality of wealth distribution in the world momentarily angered her. But she shouldn't judge, maybe this guy had started out from nothing too and worked hard for what he had got.

"Where do you need to get to in Mayfair?"

Whatever their destination, it was sure to make her pokey flat in Bermondsey look like a hovel in comparison.

"Claridges," he replied, "Do you know it?"

"Of course, I take afternoon tea there all the time," she quipped.

Kylo considered that he might have made a mistake. The girl certainly got blood pumping to his crotch, but her personality was entirely too sparky for him. When she smiled, her radiance dazzled him and made him feel unworthy, which seemed ridiculous under the circumstances.

"It really is great to see an old Aston Martin in such tip-top condition." Rey chattered on, breaking the uncomfortable silence which had settled between them. "I used to help strip down old cars for parts. Nothing as fancy as this, though." She reached over to lightly skim her index finger over the polished wood steering wheel rim.

He mused on the tiny nugget of information she'd revealed about her past. She must have been dealt a rough hand in life to end up as a prostitute. But try as he might, he couldn't picture her in an auto breakers yard. "I guess your current profession pays better than trading old gearboxes."

Kylo appraised her cheap attire with disdain. Whatever she spent her money on, it wasn't the quality of her clothing or shoes.

Rey noted his silent judgement and anger bubbled up inside her. But beggars couldn't be choosers. "I mainly do escort work," she explained. "It pays better and I have regular clients."

"How much do you charge?" As a businessman, he liked to know the figures up front.

Rey spied his platinum Rolex when his cuff slid down as he'd turned the steering wheel. Whatever she asked, he could undoubtedly afford it. "Two hundred and fifty pounds for an hour," she stated, not daring to meet his eyes. That wasn't what she would have charged the drunken guys back in Soho, not that any of them could have lasted that long. But this was her chance to make some decent money. Besides, Mr Fancy-Pants-Classic-Aston-Martin probably considered such a sum to be small fry.

Another left turn took them into Mayfair and Claridges loomed into view. Kylo pulled up outside and they got out to let the valet take over. He towered above her, even in her high-heeled boots. Lapsing into awkward silence again, Rey suspected Mr-Tall-Dark-and-Brooding was having second thoughts.

"You're under no obligation here, you know." She bit back her disappointment at possibly losing a chance to make some of the extra rent money she needed. "Give me the cab fare back to Soho and we'll call it quits."

Kylo saw the desperation in her hazel eyes despite her bravado. He couldn't pinpoint exactly what it was about her that attracted him so much. The price of fucking her, he suspected, would end up costing him a lot more than her hourly rate. "I'm staying in the best suite in the hotel," he said not meaning it as a boast. "And I'd like you to be my guest."

Rey nodded a small smile on her lips. "What's your name?"

It was a straightforward question, but he looked uncomfortable for a moment.

"Kylo," he eventually replied.

For some reason, she got the feeling he wasn't telling her the truth.

"That sounds like a made up name. You don't look like a Kylo," Rey teased, giving him a sceptical glance.

"No?" He tilted his head as he imagined coming all over her pretty face. "What do I look like, Rey with an E?"

"Trouble," she winked at him.

His lips twitched as if he might smile. It wasn't something he did often, and he managed to catch himself just in time. "Shall we?"

Rey let him lead her into the hotel lobby. Her eyes widened as she gaped at the old Art Deco opulence on display. "Oh my God," she muttered under her breath.

She attracted a few disapproving glares from some of the guests. A couple of older male patrons regarded Kylo with envy much to their female companions' disgust.

"Good evening Mr Ren." The hotel receptionist greeted him with a cheery smile. "You have a message," the young woman said as she handed him a card.

Kylo nodded his thanks and ushered Rey towards the lift. He read the note and scrunched it up in his hand. Trust Hux to get Phasma to call about his precious car.

"Not bad news, I hope."

The girl seemed genuinely concerned. He caught his reflection in the mirror at the back of the elevator, the sullen expression he wore reflecting his near-constant state of dissatisfaction with the world. "Just the owner of the Aston Martin checking I didn't damage it." Kylo pictured taking the keys and dragging them slowly across the polished paintwork.

"The car doesn't belong to you?" Rey questioned hoping he wasn't a con-artist.

"I usually get driven everywhere for work," Kylo explained. "But I do have a classic Ferrari 250 GTO in black." It had been a gift from his benefactor, Randolph Snoke.

The elevator dinged and the lift attendant manually pulled back the antique brass door to let the occupants exit. "Have a good evening sir, madam," he said with a courteous smile.

Rey had never been anywhere this luxurious in her whole life. She couldn't help gawking in wonder at the plush surroundings as Kylo led her to the door at the end of the hall. He slipped the key card into the slot and gestured for her to enter the room. "Bloody hell," she gasped as she stepped into the tastefully decorated sitting area.

Her companion headed straight for the table where he his briefcase and laptop sat. "Do you want a drink or anything?" He inquired as he took a seat on the couch and pulled out a stack of files.

The girl had wandered out onto the terrace. "You don't have to wine and dine me," she said taking in the view over Mayfair's rooftops before turning back to him. "We both know what I'm here for."

Kylo watched her for a moment as her hair fanned out in the night breeze. It wasn't as if picking up a prostitute had been on his itinerary. Now he had her, he wasn't quite sure where to begin. His headache had faded but the effects of the jet-lag made him doubt his stamina.

Rey sashayed towards him. "Here or in the bedroom?" she inquired as she pulled out a selection of condoms from her bag.

He eyed the foil squares, all the while secretly nervous his fatigue would hinder his performance. The SkyTech business deal had unsettled him, despite his protests to the contrary. Perhaps he'd had an unconscious need to blow off some steam and that's why he currently had an attractive young woman straddling his lap.

"The clock's ticking so maybe you could tell me what you'd like to do."

Rey ran her hands over his bulging biceps as she moved to loosen his tie. Kylo felt the stirrings of arousal as she ground down lightly against his crotch. As their eyes met, he got the strangest feeling, like she could see into his mind, and he wondered if she felt it too. Her fingers were tracing patterns over his chest and his pants suddenly began to get too restrictive.

"I don't think an hour is gonna be long enough for what I want to do to you," he murmured, no longer concerned about rising to the occasion. "How much for the whole night?"

For a moment, Rey could hardly believe her luck. She didn't want to risk antagonising him by asking for too much, but one night with him could save her a whole world of trouble. "A thousand pounds," she stated with as much confidence as she could muster.

Something told Kylo she would be worth every penny. "Done," he said, sliding his large hands around her waist.

Rey couldn't help letting out a whoop of joy. "It will be the best damn money you ever spent," she promised, peeling off her dress and grinding in earnest against his growing erection. "I don't kiss on the mouth, but I've got the rest covered."

Kylo gave a throaty growl as her lips trailed their way down his taut stomach. She gazed up at him through thick lashes as she worked on undoing his belt buckle and pants. His eyes followed her progress, watching as she reached to free him from his boxers. He sucked in a breath as her soft fingers wrapped around his cock and began working up and down his considerable length. His back arched as she pumped faster, occasionally pausing to swirl her tongue around his sensitive rim. She savoured the salty tang of his pre-cum lapping with enthusiasm at his gleaming slit. He unclasped her bra, massaging her pert tits with his generous hands. His rough teasing of her nipples sent shockwaves through to her core, leaving her slick and throbbing. With every bob of her head, he could feel the exquisite pressure in his balls building. His orgasm hit like a bolt of lightning. He could do nothing but shout an expletive as he emptied himself into her welcoming mouth. Rey hummed her appreciation as she swallowed his hot cum. With one last slow suck, she released his thick cock.

"That was fucking mind-blowing," Kylo gasped as he came slowly back down to earth.

She stood up wearing only her panties, her hand outstretched to him with the promise of further ecstasy in her eyes. "We're only just getting started."


	2. Chapter 2

Cinder-Effing-Rella

Chapter 2

Kylo stood under the almost-scalding water of the shower pondering his actions. His skin tingled as he washed off the smell of sex and sweat. A stack of paperwork from the biggest deal of his career awaited his attention and he'd just spent an amazing couple of hours fucking a prostitute. The imminent meeting with his estranged Uncle had opened old wounds. Bad habits were resurfacing and he could not afford to be reckless now. He turned off the shower and reached for his towel determined to get some work done.

His resolve wavered for a moment when he stepped into the bedroom and saw Rey, her brown hair splayed out over the pillows as she slept soundly. Kylo's full lips curved into a small smile as he watched her. He thought about how he'd taken from behind on that bed, pounding mercilessly into her until they both reached their peak. After two explosive orgasms, it surprised him when he'd got it up for the third time. She had given his cock the kiss of life and rode him until he saw stars. Her small perky tits were barely covered by the bed sheet and despite his previous exertions, he could feel the unmistakable stirrings of arousal. This girl turned him on like none before. When he had been buried to the hilt inside her everything else melted away. But he couldn't afford to lose his head, not now. With one last lingering look at her, he walked away.

A few hours later and the alarm on his watch beeped pulling him from a dream about a masked man with a fiery red sword. After the activities of the previous night it was probably some Freudian shit, he reasoned rubbing at his sore eyes. He had managed to grab some sleep on the couch, but not enough. The preparation for his meeting with Luke Skywalker would continue throughout the day. But first, he needed coffee and lots of it. His phone hadn't rung for hours and so he plucked it from his jacket pocket to check for messages only to find it drained of power. It wasn't the first time he'd forgotten to put it on charge. Kylo cursed under his breath and reached for the hotel phone. He punched in Hux's number and was unsurprised when his assistant answered. "Phasma, I need you to make sure Mr. Snoke gets sent an updated copy of the SkyTech proposal. He's given me the authority to sign off on the deal, but he wants to be kept informed every step of the way." He ended the call just as the hotel porter arrived with his breakfast order.

A short while after, Rey stepped out of the bedroom wearing one of the hotel's complimentary fluffy robes. She made for an adorable sight, standing awkwardly in the sitting room with her sleep-tousled hair. "You, um, probably have a lot to be getting on with," she mumbled gesturing towards his laptop. "I'll get my stuff and be on my way."

Kylo found he wasn't ready to let her go. It surprised him because he didn't let people get close. Sex satisfied an urge but he seldom found the time for it and once he got what he wanted his interest soon waned. As a rule, he usually couldn't get his sexual conquests out of the door fast enough. But this one - he felt an unfamiliar reluctance to part with her. "I ordered us some breakfast." He gestured towards the table. "You must be hungry. Won't you join me, please?"

Rey smiled and thanked him, feeling a little thrown by the unexpected turn of events. It felt strangely intimate to be sharing a meal with him, more so than two strangers having sex. She assumed he'd want her to leave as soon as possible. A selection of pastries had been laid out on the table and she chose a blueberry muffin. The sunshine warmed her face as she wandered over to the terrace and took a bite of her breakfast.

"I, um, hope you slept well." Kylo fumbled never one for small talk, especially with women he'd slept with.

She walked back to the table and took a seat, flinching at the slight tenderness between her legs. For all the men she'd fucked, none had filled her as perfectly as him and hit all the right spots inside her. "Yes, I slept like a log, thanks." She gazed at him in appreciation at the way he filled out his light blue shirt. "Did you manage to get any rest?"

"I grabbed a few hours on the couch," he said turning back to the emails on his laptop he'd been working on.

Rey saw the SkyTech logo emblazoned on the front of one of his folders. She knew it because there had been a recent news report about their experimental passenger spaceliner designs. The company, which had once been called Sky-Solo Systems, floundered six years previously when a test flight of their new military stealth jet ended in disaster. But when Sky-Solo Systems merged with Dameron Enterprises soon afterwards, they seemed to get back on track. The co-owner, Paolo "Poe" Dameron was world famous for being a former astronaut and the youngest ever American to go into space.

"You work for SkyTech?" Rey tentatively inquired.

Kylo shifted in his seat, obviously discomfited, and she began to be sorry she asked. He scowled, his full lips set in a pout. "No, I'm the CEO of Snoke Industries," he explained, avoiding meeting her questioning gaze. "We take over smaller, failing companies."

"I thought SkyTech was one of the leading aero and astronautic companies in the field." Admittedly, her knowledge on the matter was limited, but the news report certainly implied as much.

"You're a business expert as well as a hooker, are you?" Kylo sneered.

His harsh words stung and Rey decided the time had come to leave. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything." She pushed away her breakfast plate and picked up the wad of money he'd left out for her. "Thanks for the breakfast, but I don't seem to have much of an appetite after all."

Kylo leapt up to block her escape route. He regretted belittling her and felt an uncharacteristic urge to fix it. "I've been working round the clock for months on this deal." He raked a hand through his hair, looking sheepish. "SkyTech have problems that aren't in the public domain." It wasn't exactly an apology, but it was the best he could muster.

Rey nodded, accepting that he was under pressure and didn't mean to upset her. She still thought it best if she left as soon as possible. Sex with him hadn't felt like work. Usually, she had to fake her orgasms but he'd got her gushing like a geyser. She had kissed the constellation of moles on his face as she'd ridden his cock to the heights of ecstasy. The sexual chemistry between them was so strong that if they'd met under different circumstances, Rey liked to think they would have ended up in bed together one way or another. But no good could come of letting her mind wander any further down that path. He wasn't her Prince Charming and happily-ever-afters were for fairy tales and fools.

She had texted Finn as soon as she awoke to let him know she was okay, but he would worry if she wasn't home soon.

"Would you mind if I took a quick shower before I leave?" Rey asked, heading for the bathroom.

Kylo's phone started buzzing.

"Sure, help yourself," he said as he went to answer it.

Hux wanted a personal assurance his precious Aston Martin would be treated with care. Kylo rolled his eyes and promised he would be returning it in pristine condition. His colleague seemed satisfied and started droning on about his upcoming meeting with his estranged uncle.

"Skywalker's business partner is in town, so he will be joining you both for dinner this evening."

"Ah, yes, the ever charming _Poe_ Dameron." Kylo had never met the man but he imagined the much-trumpeted national hero would make for insufferable company.

"I really think you ought to take someone with you," Hux fretted. "I could clear my schedule for the evening, but it would probably be better if you took a female companion, someone to distract their attention and stop things from getting too heated. I happen to have the numbers of some suitable attractive ladies."

"No, you don't," Kylo objected as he headed towards the bathroom. "Besides, I've already got one."

"I thought you didn't know anyone in London?" Hux queried with suspicion.

Rey had turned the radio on in the shower and was singing along to Lady Marmalade.

 _"Hey, Joe, you wanna give it a go?" mmm, mmm…"  
_  
Hux cringed on the other end of the line. "What on earth is that godawful noise?"

"Nothing for you to worry about," Kylo said as he leaned against the doorframe appreciating the shape of Rey's naked body through the frosted shower screen. "Are you sure SkyTech are frozen out of those military contracts? I want cast iron assurances before tonight. That interview you had your media contact publish with the test pilot's widow hardly made a dent in SkyTech's share price. Schedule an update meeting for eleven, I'm on my way." He ended the call before his associate could object.

"You want to join me?" Rey shouted over the sound of the radio and running water as she noticed him staring at her.

"Nothing would give me greater pleasure," he replied his cock twitching in his pants at the idea. "But unfortunately, I don't have the time. I do have a business proposition for you though - if you're interested."

With her curiosity piqued, she turned off the water and opened the cubicle door. Kylo stood and waited for her with a big fluffy white towel which she let him drape around her.

"Go on," she said, curious to hear his offer.

"I'm going to be in London until the end of the week and I would like to hire your services for the duration of my stay." He watched as her eyes widened in surprise. "There will be a business dinner tonight, and there might possibly be other social functions in the coming days that I want you to attend with me. The money for last night is already yours, so how much for the week?"

Rey couldn't believe her ears. "I don't understand, I mean you're a rich, successful, and good-looking guy, I'm sure you could get any girl for free."

Kylo's expression soured. "The trouble with the free ones is that they tend to expect some level of emotional investment, and I'm not looking for a relationship right now. I'd rather deal in cold hard cash. So tell me, how much do you want?"

She pondered on a reasonable sum for six days and nights. Her regular clients wouldn't be happy if she cancelled on them at such short notice. Long after her week with this guy ended, she would need their money to keep flowing in. If she agreed to stay with him, he would have to make it worth her while.

"I'll do it for ten thousand," Rey eventually said, hoping he wouldn't think it too much.

Kylo frowned, contemplating the amount. "Based on what I've already paid, six nights should cost me six thousand," he reasoned, ever the hard-headed businessman.

"But you want days as well. Plus, I'll have to let down my regulars which will mean I'll risk losing them. If I have to offer them freebies to get them back, I'll need to cover my losses," she argued.

Kylo felt a stab of shame for attempting to haggle with her. The harsh realities of her life made him painfully aware of his privileged position. He could easily afford what she asked and more besides. "Ten thousand pounds it is then," he agreed, "Do we have a deal?"

Rey broke out into a wide smile and danced around with glee. "Damn right, we do."

She offered her hand for him to shake and he pulled her in for a kiss. His plump lips were so tempting but she ducked them and worked her way down his neck. "No kissing on the mouth, remember?" she reminded him as he tried to coax her chin upwards.

Kylo wanted every part of her. "I'll pay extra," he offered his arousal growing.

"I need to keep something for myself, it's too intimate," she protested her breath hitching as he slid a hand down between her thighs.

"More intimate than this?" He questioned, teasing her wet folds with his long, thick fingers.

Work could wait, he needed to fuck her first.

Rey moaned with pleasure as Kylo crooked his index and middle fingers inside her, rubbing his thumb against her sensitive clit. She let the towel fall and threw her head back as he worked her until she begged for release. He unbuckled his pants and hitched her up against the tiles. His eyes were wild with desire. She didn't want to ruin the moment but had to gently remind him he needed to wear a condom.

"I'll pay twenty thousand to kiss and fuck you however I want," Kylo said his sensual lips hovering close to hers.

Rey never let clients go in raw. But she still got tested regularly and he assured her he was clean too. Pregnancy wasn't a concern because she took birth control pills. The money tempted her but she worried about the consequences of breaching her professional boundaries. Her rules weren't only to ensure she kept her body safe, they were to protect her heart too. None of her previous clients ever gave her any trouble on that score. Some of them were attractive, but she wasn't attracted to them. With Kylo, the lines had already been blurred.

"No condoms but no kissing on the mouth, okay?"

He paused for a second, his pants already around his ankles. "Deal," he agreed.

His cock nudged against her slick entrance and she found herself crying out for more. He licked a stripe up her neck as he pushed into her. The money didn't matter to him, nothing mattered when he was inside her. She felt so tight and perfect around him and his pace soon became frenzied. It didn't take long until her quaking orgasm drove him over the edge. He held onto her as they slumped to the floor, pressing sloppy kisses to her neck and chest through the aftershocks.

Cold reality hit Kylo when he noted the time on his watch. He set about cleaning himself up and straightened his clothing. "You will need to get something suitable to wear tonight," he said as he went to find his briefcase. "This should cover the cost of a dress and anything else you need." Her eyes widened as he handed her a thick wad of money. "I'll give you the twenty thousand at the end of the week," he explained. "The clothes are on me."

"There must be five thousand here," Rey gasped, flicking through the notes. "I can't accept it on top of what you're already paying me, it wouldn't be right."

"I don't have time to argue." Kylo raked a hand through his raven hair and headed for the door. "I'll pick you up in the hotel lobby at seven. Be ready and wear something classy," he instructed.

Rey tucked the money inside her purse along with the thousand he'd already paid her.

"Thank you, so much," she beamed. "I'm going to make this the best week of your life."

Kylo hadn't felt true happiness in years. However, with the SkyTech deal poised to succeed and the girl on hand to help him celebrate, a rare smile tugged at his lips. He would teach Luke Skywalker not to underestimate him and cut his family ties once and for all.


	3. Chapter 3

Cinder-Effing-Rella

Chapter 3

Rey stretched out on the bed. It felt so luxurious, she almost felt guilty for enjoying it so much. She tried calling Finn but got no reply.

"What's going on?" she screeched when he finally picked up on her third attempt. "You know how I freak out when you don't answer."

"I left my phone by my bed and I'm not so fast on my feet these days, in case you've forgotten." He tapped on his plaster cast to hammer the point home. "Anyway, where the hell are you? I thought you were done with your sugar daddy."

"Sugar daddy?" Rey protested. "He's in his early thirties at the most."

"Thirties sounds old when you're barely twenty-one," Finn reasoned as he slumped down on his bed. "So, what's taking so long?"

She hesitated unsure about his reaction to her news. "Actually, I'm not coming home today." Rey fidgeted with her hair while she explained the deal. "Kylo wants me to stay the whole week with him. He already paid me for last night and gave me extra money for clothes, plus he's paying me twenty thousand pounds for the rest."

"Whoa," Finn gasped. "That's crazy! I mean - twenty thousand pounds - really?"

"I know," Rey giggled, "It'll get us back on track with the rent and the bills. Maybe I can even sign up for those college courses I looked into. Sheila wasn't happy about having to reschedule my regulars this week, but I'll make it up to her and to them."

"What's this Kylo like anyway, besides being dark and brooding, oh, and hung like a horse?" Finn chuckled. "That's how you described him in your text, wasn't it?"

Rey blushed crimson, although it summed him up pretty well. "Never mind what he's like, where should I go to get a dress for tonight? I need something classy, like designer-label-classy, and you know I don't have the first clue about fashion."

Fortunately, Finn had a friend who knew her Armani from her Vera Wang. "You remember Crystal from Hopscotch House? She works at Selfridge's now. Get yourself down to Oxford Street and she'll sort you out with something."

Half-an-hour later, and Rey found herself trying on an Alexander McQueen silk-chiffon dress with a price tag that made her eyes water. The print was rather bold but she loved it. Paired with some black Louboutin's and silk tights, she felt like a movie star. A few of the assistants had given her snooty looks when she entered the store in her cheap dress and boots. Rey already felt self-conscious and they didn't help. But Crystal didn't judge her, they both came from the same background and had dealt with much worse in their time. As someone who grew up in care homes like Rey and Finn, Crystal knew the injustice of being scorned by those who considered themselves above her. The other snooty assistants glared in disbelief as Rey handed over just short of five thousand pounds for her purchases. There had been enough money for new lingerie, a casual outfit, makeup and a few other essentials, too. It seemed obscene to spend so much on so little for someone used to eking out every penny, but she let herself enjoy the rare luxury. When she arrived back at the hotel the telephone in the room was ringing.

Rey grabbed the receiver to be met by Kylo's sonorous tones.

"You didn't give me your cell number so I had to call this one."

He sounded annoyed.

Rey fretted that she'd unwittingly done something to upset him. "Is everything okay?" She inquired.

In truth, it wasn't. Kylo arrived at the office to find a message from his estranged mother after years without contact, and it had unsettled him. The imminent meeting with his uncle already threatened to undo years of building a new identity for himself. It also irked him that, for reasons he couldn't explain, he wanted to hear the voice of a girl he had known for less than a day.

"I'm fine," he said the way people do when they're totally not. "I just want to make sure you've got everything you need for tonight. This dinner is very important to me and I need it to go without a hitch, do you understand?"

Rey expected her contribution would be minimal, limited to polite small talk and looking decorative. She wished he realised she could offer so much more if given the chance. "You haven't even told me who we are having dinner with." The idea of googling their companions occurred to her. It would be helpful to have some informed chit chat on hand, she reasoned.

"The co-owners of SkyTech will be joining us." Kylo had no intention of getting into his complicated relationship with his uncle. "Whatever happens this evening, I want you to remember that you're my employee. Do not presume to offer opinions on matters you know nothing about," he warned.

His harsh tone hurt her. She felt silly for letting herself get carried away with notions she could ever be anything more to him than a body for hire.

"Rey?" Kylo grew concerned when she fell silent. Accustomed to speaking to people however he liked without fear of consequences, it alarmed him to discover he wanted to do better for her sake.

She put her professional head on. "You can count on me," she said with false cheer. "Discretion is all part of the service."

An apology hung on his lips and went unspoken. "I'll see you in the lobby at seven sharp."

* * *

Rey sat on the edge of a brown leather chair surrounded by Art Deco elegance. As she awaited her employer, she began tapping her foot on the black and white marble floor as she fidgeted nervously with the catch on her clutch bag. Her eyes fell upon her reflection in one of the large gilded mirrors that hung in the lobby and, for a moment, she didn't recognise herself. She worried her dress might be getting creased and stood up so quickly she got light-headed. As she wobbled uneasily on her Louboutin's a strong arm reached out to steady her. Rey looked up to find Kylo gazing down at her in wonder.

"You're breathtaking," he gasped.

She giggled her beaming smile captivating everyone around her.

Kylo offered her his arm. "Shall we?"

When they arrived at the restaurant, their dinner guests were already seated at the table. Rey felt Kylo's grip on her arm tighten and she could see his jaw muscles tense as he fought to maintain his cool exterior.

"Are you late or are we early?" The younger of the two SkyTech owners quipped as he stood up to greet them.

The handsome former astronaut cut a dashing figure in his black Armani suit with his slicked-back dark, wavy hair, greying slightly at the temples.

"Paolo Dameron, I presume." Kylo gave his offered hand a firm shake as he presented his companion. "This is a friend of mine, Rey Sands."

She stepped forward to shake hands with the younger man.

"Call me Poe," he insisted flashing a charming smile to Kylo's annoyance.

His older associate stood up to greet her. Rey thought he looked more like an old professor than a business magnate with his ruffled grey hair and an untrimmed beard.

"I'm Luke Skywalker," he said mischief dancing in his eyes as he added, "I'm glad to see my nephew has at least one friend, and a pretty one at that."

Rey smiled to cover her confusion. _Did he say, nephew?_ Kylo hadn't mentioned anything about them being related. She regretted spending the afternoon pampering herself rather than doing some internet research on SkyTech or her employer like she planned to before his dismissive attitude put her off.

The four of them got seated. A waiter was soon hovering ready to present each of them with a menu. It was all in Spanish which didn't faze Rey one bit as she'd always had a talent for picking up other languages. Kylo offered to order for her but she politely declined, impressing him with her skills.

The first course had barely arrived when things turned sour.

"I know what you're up to, Ben." Luke glared at his nephew with disapproval. "I requested this dinner so I could ask you to leave SkyTech alone. Once we take all this into the boardroom, it'll get ugly and I don't want that. For my sister's sake and for our whole family, I'm begging you to walk away from this."

Rey couldn't help watching in fascination. It puzzled her as to why Skywalker kept calling Kylo, Ben. She supposed it had to be his real name and she had told him, the previous night, he didn't look like a Kylo. As she studied his sullen expression, she wasn't sure he suited the name, Ben, either.

"I can't walk away," he informed his uncle. "And even if I could, I wouldn't. Snoke Industries already owns a big chunk of your stock. We can make things very difficult for you if you don't cooperate."

"If that's your idea of negotiating, you may want to rethink your technique," Dameron interjected with a hint of a smirk.

Kylo glowered at him over his water glass as their second course arrived. The interruption gave them all a chance to take a step back and calm down.

"So, Rey," Luke turned to her with a cheery smile, his blue eyes warm and twinkling. "How long have you known my nephew?"

A blush crept across her cheeks and she didn't dare look in Kylo's direction. "Not long," she replied, truthfully.

Luke nodded, expecting as much. His nephew wasn't known for indulging in long-lasting relationships.

Kylo's temper started to flare again as he observed Poe openly flirting with Rey. She wasn't encouraging his attention but appeared flattered all the same. When he began regaling them with a story from his time as an astronaut, it took every ounce of Kylo's fragile restraint to stop him from going on a rampage.

Rey hadn't noticed his rising agitation as she focused on listening to Poe. It had quickly become evident to her that Dameron was gay by the way he checked out one of the handsome young waiters. She idly thought about how he might hit it off with Finn - if they were ever to meet.

"I spoke to your mother," Luke said regarding his nephew once again with disappointment. "She told me she tried to get hold of you again this morning. She misses you more than you know."

"Yeah, right. She misses me so much that her call today was her first one to me in over five years." Kylo hated that he couldn't disguise his hurt.

"Maybe if you hadn't stopped answering her calls in the first place, she wouldn't have left it so long," Luke scolded his calm exterior crumbling as his anger boiled up.

Rey looked on helplessly, feeling out of her depth. She placed her hand over Kylo's in an attempt to calm him but he snatched it away. Dameron tried unsuccessfully to intercede as the bickering escalated. All eyes were on them as their fellow diners turned to find the source of the commotion.

"I know that upstart Hux is behind us being frozen out of the bidding on those defence contracts." Luke kept his tone measured but his eyes were full of fury. "Poe has contacts, too."

"For all the good it will do you," Kylo snarled.

"Son of a…" His uncle stopped short, he wouldn't curse his sister for the monster her son had become.

Kylo feared Skywalker would make it personal instead of sticking to business. It angered him further that he'd allowed the situation to spiral out of his control. He swiped at his wine glass, sending the untouched red liquid inside cascading all over the table and his guests' clothing.

"You're still the same self-centred brat you always were," Luke spat as he grabbed his napkin dabbing at his light grey suit in a vain attempt to remove the stains.

Poe's black suit avoided the same fate but his white shirt hadn't been so fortunate.

The two men got up to leave. Both offered polite salutations to Rey, who sat shocked and mortified by her employer's volatile behaviour.

"Send the dry cleaning bill to Snoke Industries," Kylo sneered. "We will have the shirts off your backs soon enough, anyway."

Luke gave his nephew one last sorrowful glance before departing.

Rey didn't know what she ought to do. She excused herself to go to the ladies room while the waiters cleaned up. When she returned, Kylo had paid the restaurant bill and requested for his limo to be brought around to the front. He barely spoke two words to her on the way back to the hotel. His phone rang as they entered the lobby and part-way through the call, he threw it so hard against the tiled floor, it shattered into pieces. After a gruff apology, he sent her up to his room alone and headed for the bar. Rey appreciated he needed time to cool off. His temper made her wary of what he might be capable of next and she wondered if she'd done the right thing in accepting his offer. But it wasn't as if she could afford to just blow off twenty thousand pounds.

Once inside the room, Rey did what she should have done at the start and googled him to make sure he wasn't some sort of raging psychopath. His real name turned out to be Ben Solo, the only son of former US senator, Leia Organa, and the retired professional racing car driver, Han Solo. The scant information available on Ben seemed to have been heavily edited. Rey only found his real name and family background from looking up Luke Skywalker. Kylo Ren appeared to have come into existence six years previously, and she could find no mention of his past on his brief Snoke Industries biography.

The whole thing perplexed her and she decided to turn the TV on as a distraction. Kylo or Ben (or whoever the hell he was) would probably walk in the room at any moment. He might want to have sex with her - if he hadn't drunk himself into a stupor. Rey couldn't afford to dwell on his shady past when her job depended on catering to his every desire. She flicked around the TV channels and found Moulin Rouge! It used to be a favourite of hers and she hadn't seen it for ages. Ewan McGregor, as Christian, sang Your Song to Nicole Kidman's Satine and Rey lost herself to the romance of it. After sobbing her way through the ending, she noticed the time had gone past midnight and Kylo still hadn't returned. She had already discarded her tights and taken her dress off to save it getting crumpled. Slipping it back on, she went to go in search of him.

She decided to forego her tights and shoes, making her way down to the foyer barefooted. There were still a few guests and members of staff milling around despite the late hour. Rey strode into the bar expecting to find Kylo drowning his sorrows, but he wasn't there. To her bemusement, the bartender pointed her in the direction of the ballroom. As she approached the doors, she could hear the sound of a piano playing. She entered the room to find Kylo seated behind a vintage Steinway Concert Grand. The lights inside had been dimmed and a couple of cleaners were his only company. He played on while they swept and polished the floor. Upon seeing Rey in the doorway, Kylo politely asked the cleaners to leave. The music seemed to have calmed him, but his gaze grew heated as he watched her approach.

She leaned against the piano. "You play so beautifully," she smiled wishing he would continue.

As if he could read her mind, he resumed his playing, his fingers skilfully working their way across the ivories. Rey knew precious little about Classical music but she thought she recognised the tune. As she pondered she realised it sounded like the song All By Myself.

"It's Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No.2 in C minor," Kylo explained noting her quizzical expression.

She listened with rapt attention, giving a burst of applause when he finished. He looked up at her with such sad eyes, she could hardly bear it. With open arms, she stepped closer towards him and he pulled her in, resting his head against her chest. Rey raked her fingers gently through his soft hair as he sighed and held her tightly to him. After a while, he drew back and reached for the hem of her dress, his big hands pushing it slowly up her thighs.

"Shouldn't we go upstairs?" She questioned glancing over his shoulder to check they were alone.

Kylo didn't seem to care either way. He grabbed her by the hips and lifted her up on top of the piano. The keys jangled as he leaned in to kiss her. Rey shivered in anticipation as his fingers trailed down her body. He dipped one hand under her dress and hooked his index and middle fingers around her black lace panties. With one forceful yank, Kylo ripped them from her leaving her exposed to him. He told her to lie back as he buried his face between her open thighs. His generous mouth covered her wet heat and she cried out with pleasure as he sucked on her throbbing clit. Rey couldn't believe her luck and she wrapped her legs around him, digging her heels into his back as he lapped enthusiastically at her core. She would actually be getting paid for receiving the best oral sex of her life. All coherent thoughts were lost to her as his swirling tongue drove her to the edge of sanity.

"Come for me, my angel," Kylo murmured against her sensitive skin.

The vibration from his husky voice almost pushed her over the edge. He dipped a couple of fingers into her slick channel plunging them deep inside her. Rey gasped for breath as the tension built to an explosive release. She gripped the edge of the piano and begged for mercy as he continued to feast on her. When her orgasm hit, she swore she had never come so hard in her whole life. His lips were still slick with her juices as he nuzzled at her throat. Sated and spent, Rey did not protest when Kylo gathered her into his arms and carried her bridal style all the way to his room. After reaching the heights of ecstasy once more on the bed, they fell asleep in each other's arms.

* * *

 **I hope you all enjoyed that Reylo reimagining of the Pretty Woman piano scene.**

 **I just want to explain a few things...**

 **Firstly, I'm as clueless about fashion as Rey is, but I looked at the dresses on the Selfridge's website and picked one I thought Daisy Ridley would look good in. Alexander McQueen's A Midsummer Night's Dream Silk-chiffon dress fitted the bill for me.**

 **Secondly, I'm not actually that much of a fan of the movie Moulin Rouge! But for the Ewan McGregor Star Wars connection, and because Satine is a courtesan, I thought it was a good movie to reference in that scene.**

 **Thirdly, I've read a few interviews with Adam Driver where he talks about playing Rachmaninoff on the piano. He says he didn't listen to much modern music growing up and that he would often listen to Rachmaninoff piano concertos before going to sleep. Anyway, the one I've referenced in this chapter is wonderful and sedate enough for late night playing. The verse of the song All By Myself was based on the second movement of that particular concerto. Hence why Rey recognises it although she isn't familiar with Classical Music.**

 **Thank you all for your enthusiasm so far and please do let me know what you thought of this chapter - Mrs. P**


	4. Chapter 4

Cinder-Effing-Rella

Chapter 4

Rey awoke to find Kylo sitting next to her on the bed. He had already showered and got dressed for work.

"Good morning, Sunshine, time to go shopping."

He appeared uncharacteristically chirpy as he took out his wallet and handed her a credit card.

She eyed it warily, not exactly filled with glee at the prospect of dealing with more snooty shop assistants.

"It's a Snoke Industries business expenses card," Kylo explained. "You shouldn't have any problems using it, but call me if you do." He took in her glum expression with confusion. "Why do you look as if I just handed you a death sentence?"

He assumed she would welcome another shopping spree. The kind of women he'd slept with in the past expected to receive expensive gifts. He had no doubt that if he'd handed any of them a credit card, they would have taken it without a second thought.

"I could pop back to my flat and pack enough clothes for the rest of the week," Rey suggested. "There's no need to go to any further expense."

Kylo adjusted his silk tie as he contemplated ways to explain to her why her own clothing wouldn't do. Tact wasn't exactly his forte, but he tried to be as delicate as he could. "I represent Snoke Industries and I have to look the part. My suits are custom made by the best tailors in the world. Everything from my shoes to my sunglasses speaks to the image of the company I represent. Do you see what I'm saying?"

Rey frowned, he didn't need to remind her how far above her he was in the social strata. "So you're basically saying I'm Cinderella, and you're what? My fairy godmother?"

His lips twitched in amusement as he reached for his jacket. "Buy anything you want, dresses, shoes, whatever. We may be going out to dinner again or a social event, so you'll need some more formal wear."

She sat glum-faced - taking money for the services she provided was one thing but this made her uncomfortable.

Kylo heaved a weary sigh, losing patience with her lack of enthusiasm. "I'll be in the office all day if you need to contact me."

He grabbed his briefcase and headed for the door.

Rey jumped up and chased after him, disregarding her state of nakedness. "How much can I spend? I mean, it's not as if I want a lot, it's just the kind of stuff you're talking about tends to come with a hefty price tag." It mortified her to have to ask but she didn't want to take advantage, even if he could afford it.

Kylo turned to face her, his eyes roving appreciatively over her bare slender body. "Don't worry about the money," he said twisting a lock of her hair around his index finger and reeling her in to kiss her neck. "It means nothing to me."

* * *

Hux paced back and forth across the office floor, his face redder than his hair. "You let your personal interests get in the way with Skywalker, and now the old goat is digging his heels in," he fumed.

"It won't do him any good." Kylo didn't appreciate the rebuke, but instead of getting angry, he let himself be distracted by thoughts of Rey. He pictured her radiant smile and the way sunlight danced in her hazel eyes.

"Are even you listening to me?" Hux screeched wearing a murderous expression. "SkyTech has overextended themselves and they are up to their ears in debt. Their European contracts have been keeping the U.S. end of the company afloat. But if they don't come up with an injection of capital soon, it will all be over for them. An old chum of mine from Eton is on the board over at the First Order bank, the one SkyTech is indebted to, and I'm waiting for him to return my call."

"So what's the problem?" Kylo knew he should care more about it. This deal had occupied his every waking thought for months. Indeed, the last six years had been building up to this moment. But now he stood on the verge of getting what he wanted, it had started to feel like a hollow victory.

"Skywalker won't go down without a fight, and that Dameron fellow is attempting to charm new investors as we speak." Hux scowled as he watched his associate toying idly with a water glass. If he respected anything about Ren, it was his work ethic, and now it seemed to be slipping. "What on earth is going on with you? I heard all about your tantrum in the restaurant, by the way. And as for smashing up your phone when I called to ask you how dinner went - Really, Ren, it's no way for a grown man to carry on."

Kylo bristled at Hux's condescending tone. He knew he needed to get his focus back, and fast. Perhaps it had been the message from his mother that unbalanced him so much. It made him realise how much he missed her. The previous evening, he had let himself admit he still cared about his family, once he'd calmed down enough to be rational. Seeing his uncle again, especially under such fraught circumstances, had stirred up a lot of old memories. He had found himself seeking out a piano and playing for the first time in years.

Maybe Rey had reawakened something within him. She made him feel things he hadn't felt for years, like moments of genuine happiness and contentment. Instead of being annoyed at the intrusion when he'd woken up that morning under her tangled limbs, he briefly let himself imagine what it would be like to start every day in the same way. She made him reassess his life choices.

Kylo remembered he had company. "What did you want to be when you were a kid, Armitage?"

Hux cringed at Ren's use of his Christian name. His mouth gaped open for a second unsure of how to respond. The conversation had certainly taken an odd twist, although his raven-haired colleague's temperament could be mercurial at the best of times.

"I wanted to be an ace pilot just like my grandpa," Kylo revealed with a faraway look in his eyes.

Hux never had any time to waste on the idle fancies of childhood. All he'd ever wanted to be was the best. "I do recall informing my father that, one day, I would be the richest man in Great Britain." An ambition he wasn't yet close to achieving. "My father said why not be the richest man in the world?"

Brendon Hux had always strived to teach his son second place and last place were the same things. As a consequence, his ambition had no limits. Snoke might have practically anointed Ren as his successor, but nothing was set in stone. He had been treading carefully, but the SkyTech deal was make-or-break. From the look of it, it appeared his rival didn't have the stomach to get the job done.

Phasma announced her arrival with a brisk knock at the door. She delivered Kylo the replacement phone he had requested. With a hint of a smile, she handed Hux a note. As he glanced at it, he saw a chance to outmanoeuvre his competition and he intended to seize it.

"I'll leave you to it then," Hux said as he marched swiftly to the door.

Kylo barely noticed him depart as his thoughts drifted once more to the family he'd turned his back on.

* * *

Rey stood on the street corner looking out for the arrival of her friend. After spending the morning shopping, she'd dropped her purchases back at the hotel, got changed, and then called Finn. He promised he'd be there as soon as he could get a taxi. After half-an-hour of waiting, she began to worry that arranging an impromptu rendezvous with her friend had been a bad idea. Kylo might return from work early and she should be at the hotel ready to greet him whenever he arrived. Rey had planned a little surprise for his return. Now she knew something of his family history, she hoped the gift she'd bought for him would remind him of happier times.

A cab approached and she could see her friend waving to her from the backseat.

"Finn," she shrieked, happy and relieved to see him.

The driver helped him out with his crutches and Rey handed the man a handsome tip along with the fare.

"Look at you," Finn beamed admiring her new clothes. "High society suits you, babe."

Rey hugged him and kissed his cheek. "Thanks," she said with a bashful smile as she gazed down at her outfit. After freaking out over successive price tags during her shopping trip, she'd decided not to look and simply choose things she liked. But she knew the black and white striped wool blend dress with black pumps she currently wore cost the best part of six hundred pounds. "It's easy to scrub up well when you've got money."

"Nah, you always look good," Finn argued. "What was it old Mrs. O'Leary at Jakku Place used to say? You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. Besides, it's what's underneath that counts and you've always been a diamond."

Rey smiled and her eyes misted over; he always said the sweetest things. She indicated towards a nearby Starbucks. "Come on, let's grab a quick coffee. I can't stay long."

Once they got seated with their drinks, she reached into her bag and pulled out an envelope before sliding it across the table to her friend. "That should tide you over until the end of the week."

"I'll manage," Finn insisted as he pushed it back.

"Don't be silly," Rey scolded. "You've got to pay the cab fare home and you need groceries. The cupboards were practically bare when I left and I know you've emptied your bank account."

"You've earned that money and you should keep it," Finn argued and frowned with concern as he checked her over for any signs of bruises. "I hope he's being gentle with you."

"It's fine, really," she insisted, sliding the money back to him. "Kylo is actually very generous, and not just with his money."

Rey wondered if she should tell Finn about the Ben Solo stuff. He would only worry, she reasoned, and she didn't know the whole story yet. Kylo hadn't wanted to talk about it and it wasn't really any of her business. She couldn't help caring though and longed for him to open his heart to her.

Finn caught something in her expression and scowled at her, disapprovingly. "I know that look," he chided. "I hope you're not falling for him."

"Of course, I'm not," Rey scoffed. "That would be a stupid thing to do."

He wasn't convinced "You haven't kissed him on the mouth have you?"

"No, not even once." She hadn't but she wanted to.

Finn reached for her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. "You know it'll only end in heartbreak and I can't bear to see you getting hurt peanut."

Rey pulled away, irritated by his assumptions. "I like him, okay? That's all, and there's no rule that says I can't enjoy what we do together." She felt bad for snapping at her best friend when she knew he had her best interests at heart. He had been the only constant in her life and the one person she could always count on. But she'd glimpsed something in Kylo like he was a kindred spirit and he understood her on some deep unspoken level. "It's just - for all his money and everything that goes with it, I can see he knows what it is to feel lost and alone."

"Pardon me if I don't get all weepy over Trump Junior," Finn sneered.

Rey didn't want to argue with him. "I know what I'm doing, and it's only for a few more days." Her eyes silently pleaded for his understanding.

She'd seen him get in over his head with a client. It happened sometimes, although never to her, not before Kylo. He had well and truly got under her skin.

Finn understood about the money and the rest. She would always have his shoulder to cry on if she needed it. "Just be careful, that's all," he warned.

* * *

Kylo arrived back at the hotel preoccupied and feeling torn apart by his conflicting loyalties. Mr. Snoke had called him before he left the office. He wanted to talk about the SkyTech deal and his vision for the company. The confidence the old man placed in him filled him with guilt about the amount of time he'd wasted dwelling on the past. Snoke Industries deserved his full attention in the present and the future. He stomped, fists clenched, into the hotel room, forgetting for a moment he had company.

"Hi, honey, how was your day?"

Rey's voice startled him out of his reverie. He looked up to find her draped over the couch wearing nothing but a damson-coloured tie.

"Better now," Kylo drawled with hunger in his eyes his troubles evaporating.

"I got it for you," she explained, holding up the silk material so he could get a closer look. "See, it's got little aeroplanes embroidered on it."

He couldn't focus on the tie or anything else with her sitting there naked. She held out her hand to him and he pulled her into his arms. His kisses were fierce as he swept her up and carried her to the bed. He couldn't get rid of his clothes fast enough. In the end, he settled for stripping off his jacket, removing his tie, opening his shirt and leaving his pants wrapped around one leg.

"I need to be inside you," he murmured low into her ear as the tip of his cock found her welcoming wet heat.

Rey moaned with pleasure as he buried himself in her. His thrusts were hard and deep and his mouth on her skin bruising. He kept up a frantic pace, sweat dripping from his brow as he pounded into her like a jackhammer. Their orgasms hit almost simultaneously, her climax triggering his as he filled her with his cum. Kylo collapsed next to her on the bed as they both caught their breath.

"I take it you really liked the tie, then?" she teased turning to him with one of her beaming smiles.

He had forgotten all about the strip of silk around her neck. The sight of it caused him to start laughing until his whole body shook. Rey joined in and then suggested he should use it to tie her hands to the headboard when he fucked her again. Kylo liked her idea.

Later that night, she suggested they take a bath together. Her thighs were sticky from his cum and they were both sweaty from their exertions. The bathtub was huge and she'd been dying to try it out. Big as it was, Kylo still had to sit with his legs bent for it to accommodate his tall frame. He laid his head back against her chest as she ran the washcloth over his toned abs, her other hand resting over his heart. He covered it with one of his own, twining his fingers with hers.

"I've been thinking about my family today," he revealed.

He didn't speak again for a while and Rey wondered if she should say something. But then, he continued, "I've been angry at them for so long, it's become like a bad habit. When I accepted Randolph Snoke's offer to join his company it was on the condition that I renounced my family and everything associated with them, even my name. I left Ben Solo behind and became Kylo Ren. At least, that's what I told myself."

"Why would you do such a thing?" Rey blurted out before she could think better of it. She couldn't understand why anyone would turn their back on a loving family. When he fell silent, she sought to backpedal as she didn't know all the facts. "I mean, I know it's none of my business. But I'm here for you if you want to talk about it."

Kylo was hesitant at first. For some unknown reason, he trusted her and she listened as he told her all about his family history. His grandfather, Anakin Skywalker, a decorated U.S. Air Force Colonel, had started the business that would eventually become SkyTech. At the age of twenty, he'd married Padmé, his childhood sweetheart. She tragically died in childbirth after only three short years of marriage. Anakin, consumed with grief, had thrown himself into his work. Unable to care for the twins he unfairly blamed for their mother's death, he sent them away. Luke ended up being raised by his aunt and uncle on a farm while his sister Leia was adopted by an American diplomat and his wife, Bail and Breha Organa. Twenty-three years later, Anakin discovered he had terminal lung cancer. He managed to reconcile with his son before his death, but his daughter refused to see him. The company he founded he bequeathed to both his children. Luke determined to carry on the family business and restore its reputation after years of Anakin's shady dealing but Leia refused to have any part of it. She married the famous racing car driver Han Solo soon after her biological father's death. Luke took charge of Vader Incorporated and renamed it Sky-Solo Systems. His sister had fallen pregnant on her honeymoon, and Luke felt her child should have some stake in the company even if she didn't want it. Ben grew up hearing stories about his grandfather from his uncle and he began learning the business during school holidays.

"I guess I took it for granted that one day the company would be mine," Kylo confessed. "I got into Harvard and ended up serving my internship at Snoke Industries. My mother thought I should get experience outside the family business. Randolph Snoke had once been a rival of my grandfather's. With his reputation for being ruthless and hard to please, I couldn't help being flattered when he took a special interest in me. He offered me a job when I graduated but I remained determined to go and work with my uncle. Luke Skywalker is many good things, but a savvy businessman he is not. I didn't know how bad things were with the company finances until the shit had already hit the fan. Sky-Solo Systems were competing for a contract to supply the U.S. military with a new line of stealth aircraft. We practically had it in the bag and then the test flight went horribly wrong. The official report concluded the crash was down to pilot error but the damage was done. Bankruptcy loomed and Randolph Snoke offered to keep us afloat if my uncle agreed to make the three of us equal shareholders in the business. Luke refused, saying he would rather see the company go bust. I begged my parents to help, but my father wasn't interested and my mother wouldn't give me a dime. I got so angry at all of them for ruining grandfather's business and depriving me of what I saw as my birthright. When I heard Luke had a deal with Dameron Enterprises in the pipeline and intended to make Paolo Dameron a full partner in the business, I saw red. My uncle said I was too much like my grandfather, and that wasn't what the company needed. Randolph Snoke contacted me and made me an offer I couldn't refuse. It didn't seem like a hardship at the time to relinquish my family name and cut them out of my life. And Mr. Snoke promised me that SkyTech would one day be mine to do with as I pleased."

Kylo lapsed into quiet contemplation. The bathwater had cooled, although he didn't seem to have noticed.

"Come on," Rey coaxed kissing the tip of one of his ears. "Let's get dried off and go to bed."

The rest of the night, Kylo barely spoke a word. He put his mouth to other uses. Rey returned the favour and he eventually drifted off to sleep with her warm body spooning his.


	5. Chapter 5

Cinder-Effing-Rella

Chapter 5

Despite living in and around the capital all her life, Rey had never been to the Tower of London. One of the secondary schools she attended took her on trip to the Science Museum and she had loved it. But such outings were a luxury for kids in care and she didn't have any money to spare on culture as an adult. When Kylo called her from the office and told her they would be attending a Champagne reception at the Tower of London that evening, she genuinely got excited about it. Rey didn't even know it was possible to hire out historical landmarks for fancy social events. Anything could be bought for the right price, she supposed.

She had no idea what the dress code might be for Champagne quaffing in a place where traitors used to be executed. It sent her into a frenzy of activity and she began sorting through the outfits she'd purchased in her search for something suitable. Rey picked out a floral-patterned midi-dress and held it up against her body. It looked too cheerful for a place with such a blood-soaked history and she swiftly discarded it onto the bed. Next, she selected a calf-length, sleeveless black gown with a fancy crystal-encrusted neckline. Something told her that was the one. A pair of sparkly Jimmy Choo shoes went with it and so she set them aside for later.

Rey found she welcomed the distraction of choosing an outfit. She had been lonely after Kylo left the hotel to go to work. The things he'd told her about his past kept re-playing in her mind. He clearly wasn't the type of person who spilt out his deepest secrets to just anyone, and she had been flattered that he chose to confide in her. She had listened without judgement and held him through the night. When Kylo woke her early that morning with tender caresses, Rey could almost believe he felt something for her beyond a desire to sate his sexual appetite. His thick fingers soon had her wet for him. He wanted to take it slow, his cock sliding in and out of her in long, deep strokes. Rey would have been happy for him to take his pleasure like that even if it didn't get her off, but Kylo surprised her by pulling back and eating her out until she came against his skilful tongue. He finished by jerking off over her tits and face before swooping down to lick her cum-covered lips. In her surprise, she almost let him kiss her, but she turned her face at the last second. Disappointment filled his eyes and he got up to get ready for work.

After Kylo had gone to the office, Rey started to think about his family and how he had cut them out of his life. His uncle seemed like a decent man and, going by the pictures of his parents she'd found on the Internet, they looked like nice people too. As an orphan who would have given anything to have her parents back, Rey couldn't imagine ever walking away from her loved ones. Kylo had told her his reasons for doing what he did and she tried to see it from his point of view, but it still bothered her. Perhaps he wasn't a kindred spirit, after all, she mused. He had chosen his loneliness and isolation. If he wanted to try and make things right with his family, he could. She would never get back what she'd lost.

* * *

Rey stole a glance at Kylo as they rode towards the Tower of London in the back of a black limousine. He had been distant and distracted since his return from the office. It occurred to her, he had become closed off when she wouldn't let him kiss her during their last sexual encounter. As she had already been clear with him about her stance on that subject, she refused to feel bad about it. However, the two of them had been growing closer, or so she'd thought. She hoped she hadn't ruined everything to keep a rule she badly wanted to break.

Kylo had got back late from work and headed straight for the shower. He then changed into a black suit with a matching shirt and finishing off by putting on the tie she'd bought for him. Rey busied herself by adding the finishing touches to her hair, which she'd styled in a sleek top-knot. She tried asking him about his day and if he wanted to talk more about his family but he shut her down with monosyllabic replies on both topics. There hadn't been much time for conversation, anyway. Rey told herself Kylo wasn't paying her to be his therapist and she tried not to be hurt by his sudden change in attitude. In a few more days, he would be gone from her life forever. She had no room to be complacent —Twenty thousand pounds in exchange for being fucked senseless by a good-looking guy, who also took her out to fancy Champagne receptions, not to mention all the extra money he'd given her to spend on clothes and such, was more than adequete compensation. Finn was right, she shouldn't get too attached.

"Didn't you tell me you hated parties?" Rey inquired unable to shake her sour mood. "Why are we going to this one?"

"It's business," he replied as he tapped out a message on his phone.

"Do I look the part, at least?" She didn't want to fish for compliments but it did bother her he hadn't said a thing about her outfit.

"You look great," Kylo answered without even looking up from his phone screen.

Rey bristled at his indifference after all the attention he'd been lavishing on her in bed and out of it. At least he'd put the tie on, she consoled herself. It wasn't as if she had the right to expect anything more from him. She was his employee, not his girlfriend.

The rest of the journey passed in silence. As they approached their destination, Rey spotted a couple of stern Beefeaters standing guard at the tower gate watching as the members of high society arrived. When the limo pulled into the courtyard, she got a feeling of dread in her stomach — she would be mingling with people who lived in a completely different world to the one she knew. It wasn't that she considered them superior to her in any way but, all the same, she felt out of place. If they guessed the truth about her and Kylo, they would surely look down their noses at her.

"What if someone recognises me?" Rey fretted reluctant to get out of the car.

It seemed unlikely as none of her clients worked for First Order Bank, the hosts of the party. Some of her previous clientele worked in the city, but they weren't the type of high ranking businessmen that got invited to functions like this one.

Kylo turned to her sullen-faced as he tucked his phone into the pocket of his pants. "Even if someone did recognise you, I doubt they'd admit to it with their wives and girlfriends standing right beside them."

It wasn't exactly the reassurance she'd been looking for, but he had a point. Rey got out of the limo and took his offered arm.

"Just smile and do that English thing of making small talk about the weather or something," Kylo instructed as he led her to the reception entrance.

The New Armouries building was one of the later additions to the Tower of London. It had a wood beamed ceiling held in place by a line of wooden pillars. A bar served Champagne and cocktails at one end of the room while a string quartet played in the corner. Waiting staff circulated around with trays of drinks and canapes. There were lots of other well-dressed couples already inside. A tall ginger haired man and an even taller platinum blonde woman made a beeline for them the minute they stepped through the door.

"Armitage Hux, Phasma, this is Rey Sands."

Kylo kept the introductions brief with no explanation as to who she was to him. She already knew they all worked for Snoke Industries from the snippets of phone conversations she'd heard. Both were impeccably dressed and Rey couldn't help but feel a little intimidated as they studied her with interest. From their expressions, she could tell they weren't impressed. Better pleased with themselves than what they see, Rey thought, recalling a line from Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice.

"Well, Ren, aren't you the dark horse? You told us you didn't know anyone in London."

Hux had to be one of the smarmiest men it had ever been her misfortune to meet.

Kylo appeared visibly annoyed by his colleague's unwelcome interest in his companion. "I didn't, and now I do," he said in a tone meant to deter further questioning. "At least I haven't brought my assistant as my date."

"I'll have you know, I'm practically engaged to Lady Cressida Fossington-Gore. She is the daughter of an Earl," Hux bragged. "I didn't invite her because we are here tonight for business purposes, in case you've forgotten. Skywalker hasn't put in an appearance yet but I've seen Dameron making the rounds. We need to keep an eye on that one - he could sell sand to the Arabs."

"Where is he now?" Kylo towered above most of the guests and he couldn't see the former Astronaut anywhere.

"The bank has arranged for the guests to take tours of some of the attractions they have here, if they want," Hux explained, showing no inclination to join in. "Dameron's gone to watch the Ceremony of The Keys." He cast a conspiratorial glance in his assistant's direction. "There are tours of the Crown Jewels, too — if you ladies would care to partake."

Before Rey realised what was happening, she found herself being dragged away by an insistent Phasma.

"Come, my dear, let's sample the hospitality while the boys talk shop."

Kylo either failed to notice her pleading glance or he didn't care. With resignation, she allowed the tall blonde stranger to lead her towards the bar. She didn't drink much alcohol as a rule, but gratefully accepted a flute of Champagne and took a big gulp.

"You look like you needed that." Phasma gave her a sympathetic smile. "Our Mr. Ren has been known to drive people to drink. So, how long have the two of you been — friends?"

"Not long," Rey replied, intending to stay on her guard.

Make polite small talk, that's what Kylo advised her to do. However, Phasma didn't seem the sort to be satisfied with discussing the British weather.

The tall blonde leaned in signalling that she had private information to impart. "Just between us girls, I hear Ren is the kind of guy who takes what he wants from a woman and then moves on to the next. He has never had a relationship that lasted for more than a couple of weeks in the six years I've known him."

Rey didn't know what to say to that.

She had no burning desire to see the Crown Jewels, but when one of the Beefeaters came in to announce the tour was about to begin, she thought it would be a good diversion. Phasma kept asking her personal questions she would rather not answer. Rey almost choked on her Champagne when the blonde started speculating about the weird stuff she imagined Kylo liked to do in bed. As a prostitute, she thought she'd heard it all. But the talk about masks, restraints, and other kinds of role-playing paraphernalia had her blushing like a virgin. If she needed to feign interest in an exhibition of gaudy jewellery to avoid answering any more personal questions, she would do it.

As they followed the path of the tour, Phasma gave the various display cases no more than a cursory glance. Once she realised her companion wasn't going to spill any juicy secrets about the heir apparent to Snoke Industries, Phasma lost all interest in the tour and in Rey. In her eagerness to get back to the action of the party, she tried to rush them through the exhibition, glowering at the tour guide when the man wouldn't be hurried. To her surprise, Rey found the history of the Royal collection fascinating, even if the jewels themselves left her cold. Some of them were remnants of the British Empire era, like the Koh-i-Noor diamond. It inspired unease in her as well as awe. She had never considered herself an anti-monarchist, but it seemed obscene to have so much wealth hoarded when there were so many people in need.

When she finished circling the exhibits, Rey found that Phasma had deserted her. She didn't mourn the loss. The night air had turned chilly and she decided to make her way back to the New Armouries. As she passed by Tower Green, she heard a familiar voice calling out to her.

"Rey, I thought that was you," Poe Dameron greeted her with the first genuine smile she'd seen all evening.

She had been dreading re-joining the party and so she welcomed his friendly banter. It turned out he knew a lot about the history of the place. The spot where they were standing happened to be right next to where Anne Boleyn lost her head to an executioner's sword. Poe noticed she was shivering from the cold and removed his jacket before draping it over her shoulders. Rey appreciated his gentlemanly act, even more so because she knew there was nothing behind it other than concern for her wellbeing. She found herself so engrossed in Poe's recounting of the tale of Anne Boleyn's unfortunate fate, she failed to notice Kylo had left the party in search of her.

He didn't see her standing across the green from him, but Hux had followed him outside and nothing escaped his keen eyes.

"At the risk of triggering one of your infamous tantrums, how well do you know this Rey girl?" Hux queried as he kept her in his sights from across the courtyard.

Kylo turned to him with a fearsome scowl. "That's none of your concern," he snapped.

Hux refused to be cowed. "It is my concern when I see her having a cosy chat with Paolo Dameron. You know, the fellow whose company we are trying to take over."

Kylo whipped his head around to see Rey laughing at something Poe said. His blood boiled to watch her enjoying the company of another man. He gritted his teeth together, preparing to go and drag her away from the too-charming, former-astronaut.

"How do you know she isn't working for him or for SkyTech?" Hux wouldn't let it go. "She could have befriended you in order to pass information back to them."

"Don't be ridiculous," Kylo snapped. "She met Dameron at dinner the other night. She is not an industrial spy."

"How can you be sure?" His colleague's paranoia wasn't so easily assuaged. "Where did you meet her?"

Hux noted Ren's flustered expression with interest. His cheeks were red and it wasn't just from anger.

With a huff of exasperation, Kylo explained the circumstances of their first encounter in a low voice. "When I borrowed your car the other night, I got lost on my way to the hotel. I ended up in Soho and I met Rey. She directed me back to Mayfair and I asked her to be my guest for the evening."

Hux took in the information, his eyes widening as he realised what it meant. "You, you picked her up in Soho — at night? You mean she's a pro—,"

"Don't say that word," Kylo snarled cutting him off. "This is the last conversation we will have on the subject, understand? You will not discuss this matter again, ever."

Hux nodded unable to fully bite back his smirk. "Of course not, old chum. Your secret is safe with me."

Kylo stomped back inside the reception without retrieving the girl who'd been putting ideas in his head and making him feel things he would rather not.

Across the green, Paolo Dameron spotted a potential investor and politely excused himself, leaving Rey to return to the party alone.

Hux had remained outside, watching and waiting. He moved out of the shadows, startling her as she walked by him.

"Are you having a good time?" He inquired getting up close to her.

Rey began to feel uncomfortable but endeavoured not to show it. She pasted on a fake smile. "Yes, it's an amazing place, isn't it?" she enthused.

Hux leaned in closer still to speak intimately with her. "Kylo told me your little secret," he whispered. As he noted the dawning expression of realisation and horror on her face, he added. "Don't worry, I won't breathe a word, my lips are sealed. Anyone who can fuck a smile onto Ren's face is well worth the money in my book."

Rey had never felt so cheap and small. She excused herself and hurried away determined to hold in her devastation, she would not give Hux the satisfaction of seeing her cry. It occurred to her, she should cut her losses and get out right there and then. She still had most of the money Kylo had paid her for their first night together. The dress and shoes she currently had on would fetch a decent amount on eBay. Twenty thousand pounds would solve a lot of her problems, but she'd have to sacrifice her remaining dignity to collect it. But before she could take flight, a familiar tall and brooding figure came stalking towards her.

"The driver is bringing the car around," Kylo gruffly informed her. "Come on, we're leaving." He turned his back on her, expecting her to follow on behind him.

To her dismay, Rey realised she would have to return to the hotel. Her old clothes and the bag with all her money in it were there. She had to go with him if only to retrieve her stuff. Rey swept the tears from her cheeks and attempted to rein in her emotions. She had been a fool to imagine he truly cared for her. He enjoyed having sex with her and that was all. Any hope she might have had that he saw her as anything more than a prostitute vanished when Hux approached her full of smug condescension. She had never been ashamed of doing what she needed to in order to survive. But as she'd stood there, dolled up to the nines in clothes she could never ordinarily afford, she felt cheap and sordid.

The car journey passed mostly in silence, both of them too wrapped up in their own thoughts to bother with conversation. When they were almost at the hotel, Kylo ceased his blank gazing out of the window and turned his attention to Rey. She had chosen to sit as far from him as the back of a limousine would allow.

"I'm glad you were able to find a friend at the party," he remarked his gaze dark and cold.

Rey could see he was upset about something. What did he mean? There hadn't been many friendly faces at that party — not even his. She furrowed her brow in confusion puzzling as to who he might be referring to, and then she realised — Kylo must have seen them together.

"Oh, do you mean Poe Dameron?"

Rey watched as he curled his lip in disgust, an action which further inflamed her anger. He had no right to be unhappy about it when he'd packed her off with a stranger to get her out of his sight.

"Yeah, well, Phasma is a total cow and Hux has got a stick the size of the Shard up his arse," she spat. "Anyway, it's not as if you were interested in keeping me company. Poe is a proper gentleman, unlike — Oh, never mind." His sour expression told her she might as well save her breath. Besides, it wasn't worth arguing when she had already made her mind up to leave.

The car pulled up outside the hotel and Kylo didn't wait for the driver to open the door as he exited the vehicle. Rey shot out after him, eager to grab her stuff from his room and go home. He stomped ahead of her clenching his fists. She had seen him do that before when his temper got the better of him and she wasn't worried he would hurt her. Still, the faster she could get away from him the better, as far as she was concerned. Once they got inside the door, he slammed it shut.

"Is that what I'm paying you for?" Kylo hissed through clenched teeth. "To tout for business with other guys the minute my back is turned, huh?"

Rey couldn't speak for a second, and then she exploded in a fit of righteous indignation. "How dare you — you monster!" She screeched. "You go around telling Hux and god knows who else that I'm a prostitute and then accuse me of touting for custom?"

Kylo's face twisted with rage. "I warned him not to say anything about that," he snarled, imagining gripping the ginger-haired executive by the throat.

"Yeah, well, he did." Rey went to get her bag from the bedroom and to grab a few of the designer dresses from the closet. "And, even if I was looking for extra work, Poe Dameron wouldn't be interested in anything I could offer him. My flatmate Finn would be more his cup of tea."

Kylo followed her, watching with growing alarm as she gathered her things together. "What are you doing?"

He stood in the doorway, his tall frame blocking her escape route.

"You can keep your money." Rey glared at him with contempt. "I don't have much but I'd like to hold on to the shred of dignity I've got left." She held her clothes tight to her chest and stepped towards him. "Please, get out of my way so I can go home."

He remained as still as a statue, his face blank. But she stood her ground and refused to back down. After a few tense moments, Kylo moved aside to let her pass. Heaving a sigh of relief, she headed straight for the door. Rey could feel his eyes burning into her with every step. She pushed onwards, refusing to look in his direction. He means nothing to me, she told herself, determined to walk out of his life forever.

* * *

 **Argh, sorry for the angst, people. But I am trying to follow the story structure of Pretty Woman so it couldn't be all plain sailing.**

 **Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to leave a comment, it's much appreciated. Please do keep the feedback coming - Mrs P**


	6. Chapter 6

Cinder-Effing-Rella

Chapter 6

 _"Please…"_

Before she got more than a couple of steps out of the door, Kylo's trembling voice brought her to a standstill.

He couldn't let her walk away.

"Please don't go," he begged. "I didn't mean to hurt you and I'm sorry for everything. I saw you with Dameron and I didn't like it."

Rey refused to turn and meet his gaze. "We were only talking," she insisted. "He's a nice guy and that's all there is to it."

"I still didn't like it," Kylo pouted.

"What about Hux?" She asked keeping her eyes fixed on the wall. "Why did you have to tell him about me?"

"Hux thought you were spying for SkyTech and I had to set him straight. We are in the middle of the biggest deal of both our careers. I should have made something up but I just wasn't prepared," he explained. "I'll make him sorry he said anything and for upsetting you, I promise you that. What did he say to you, anyway?"

Tears welled in her eyes and Rey bit on her lower lip to keep them at bay. "It doesn't matter," she muttered.

"It matters to me," Kylo said aching to close the space between them and wrap her up in his arms. "You matter to me."

Rey turned to face him her mouth open in surprise at his declaration.

He held his hand out to her. "Please, stay with me for the rest of the week. I don't want you to go. It's only three more days."

The voice inside her head yelled at her to run away as fast as she could, but Rey chose to ignore it. She didn't really want to leave, and not just because of the money.

"I'll stay," she almost whispered. "But don't ever treat me that way again."

Her firm warning left Kylo duly chastened as he followed her back into the hotel room.

At first, things were awkward between them. He hungered to glide his tongue over every sweet inch of her but didn't want her to feel under any obligation to have sex with him. Rey went into the bedroom to put her dresses on hangers and change out of her gown. He trailed after her, lumbering about in the doorway.

"I could, um, sleep on the couch tonight," he suggested, nervously raking a hand through his hair.

Rey finished organising the closet and turned to look at him. She couldn't help finding him adorable. Being such a tall, broad-chested man, he didn't seem to know what to do with his body when he got anxious. He fidgeted about like an overgrown kid.

"Come here," she said holding her hand out to him.

Kylo obeyed and sheepishly stumbled towards her.

Rey grabbed him by his tie and reeled him in to unbutton his shirt. Soon, their touches heated up until they were thrashing about on the bed together. She could feel him hard and desperate for more as he peeled off her dress.

"I want to fucking live between your thighs," he growled as he nipped, sucked, and licked at her tits.

She had always considered her breasts to be small and unremarkable but he couldn't seem to get enough of them. With the help of his teeth, her soaked lace panties were torn from her. Kylo couldn't wait to bury his tongue in her hot wet centre. He groaned in pleasure as he feasted on her. Rey got so turned on from watching and hearing his enjoyment in eating her out, she knew she wouldn't last long. She could feel her orgasm building from the tips of her toes. He hit her sweet spot and her hips bucked as she came, sending delicious shockwaves through her body. He gave her no time to recover as he hovered over her and entered her with one long, deep stroke. His thrusts were urgent and his kisses fierce.

"You feel so good," Kylo breathed in her ear. "You're gonna make me come so hard."

Rey raked her short nails over his toned chest, brushing his sensitive nipples.

"Oh, f-u-ck," he cried slamming into her as she braced herself against the headboard.

He hit his peak with a guttural roar, spilling his hot cum inside her.

Once his breathing had calmed, Kylo covered her body with kisses, respectfully avoiding her mouth as he brought her to orgasm again with his fingers. It took her some time for her to recover, and so he held her in his arms, his head resting against her thundering heart.

"Tell me about yourself," he pleaded as she turned to face him.

Rey hesitated reluctant to impart her deepest secrets.

"Hey," he said reaching out to tenderly stroke her cheek. "I know after what happened with Hux you're probably feeling gun-shy. But you can trust me, I swear."

She bit her lower lip contemplating his promise. No one except Finn knew or cared about her past. But Kylo had opened up to her about his family, she could at least return the favour. "Alright," she sighed. "I don't want you feeling sorry for me, though. It is what it is, okay?"

Kylo nodded, part of him concerned he shouldn't be getting so involved with her while also knowing it was too late for him to worry about that.

"I was abandoned at the age of six. My parents were alcoholics and one day, they left me with a neighbour and never came back. I had no other family to take me in so I ended up being placed in a children's home. That is where I met my flatmate and BFF, Finn. Social services had taken him away from his mother when he was three due to neglect. Both of us got shunted around for years in and out of foster care. No one wants to adopt older kids and I'd convinced myself that one day, my parents would come back for me. I didn't know then they'd both drunk themselves to death. Anyway, at the age of thirteen, I got placed with a creepy guy called Unkar Plutt. He owned a scrap metal business and he showed me how to strip old cars for parts. I had to work for him every spare minute I got or he withheld my meals. He leered at me all the time and talked about what he'd like to do to me. But I couldn't get anyone except Finn to believe what he was like. Plutt never actually laid a hand on me, but the threat was always there. I stood a few years of it until I finished my GCSE exams, and then I ran away. Finn is a few years older than me and he'd already aged out of the care system. We ended up staying in some crummy hostels and even spent nights sleeping on the streets. A homeless charity eventually helped us get jobs and temporary accommodation. I worked in a cafe and Finn in a nightclub, but we couldn't get enough money together to rent anywhere decent. It's not like either of us planned on making this our chosen profession. Finn met an older woman at the nightclub who ran an escort agency. She made it sound so easy and we were desperate. I didn't want to do it and I stuck with the waitressing until the cafe owner decided to sell up. Finn and me had just found a nice two-bedroomed flat to rent and we were going to lose it if we couldn't find the deposit. He was making good money but it wasn't enough. I called Sheila, the woman who runs the escort agency, and she set me up with a client. I had just turned eighteen, and my experience of sex consisted of losing my virginity a few months earlier to a guy I'd worked with at the cafe. The first time I did it for money with a man old enough to be my father and I hated every second. I threw up and cried for hours afterwards. But then I got some regulars and it wasn't so bad. It isn't as if it's anyone's childhood dream. We do what we have to do to get by."

Rey spoke in a matter-of-fact way and without a trace of self-pity. Her story moved him and left Kylo awed by her strength of character. She had found a way to survive the crummy hand she'd been dealt, and who was he to judge her life choices? An idea had been forming in his mind; he wanted to make things better for her somehow. He wasn't accustomed to caring so much about another person's welfare and he felt out of his depth.

"If you got the chance to do something else, what would you do?" Kylo inquired knowing she would likely refuse any handouts. He could find some way to help her get started down a new career path.

"There are a couple of college courses I've been looking into," Rey confessed. "I've always been good at fixing stuff like cars and electronic gadgets."

She was full of surprises.

"You're a woman of many talents." Kylo said giving her a suggestive smirk.

"I don't know about that," Rey blushed never one to take compliments easily.

"What would you need to get started?" He kept his tone casual, hoping she wouldn't be offended.

He was being sweet, she realised that, but she couldn't accept his charity.

"The twenty thousand will cover it," Rey said in such a way as to dissuade him from pushing the matter any further.

Kylo backed off without argument. After their reconciliation, he didn't want to upset her again. His heart clenched at the idea of having to leave her to resume her life of hardship. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he fantasised about a possible future for them, but they were such different people. He would be turning thirty soon and she was almost nine years his junior. With his life in New York and hers in London, it surely wouldn't work out between them in the long run. But he swore to himself that he would find some way to help her before their time together came to an end.

* * *

Kylo had been all set to rip Hux a new one when he got to the office. However, the slippery weasel kept evading his grasp. A conference call from Snoke finally got them in the same room together, but it didn't go the way he planned. Hux had used his initiative and got his contact at First Order bank to put some serious pressure on SkyTech. A deadline had been set for them to clear their outstanding debts by the end of the week or the company would have no choice but to go into administration. Hux presented his intervention as being in service of Snoke Industries. But Kylo knew the ginger rat only served himself.

He had been off his game, he accepted that, but he'd come to accept it was because he still cared about his family. Perhaps if he could speak to his uncle again, they might be able to work something out. Snoke wanted SkyTech to become part of his empire, stripped of its identity as he had been. Kylo didn't want to see the total annihilation of the business his grandfather had started. In that respect, his goal hadn't changed in six years, despite what he owed to Randolph Snoke. If he went against his benefactor now, it would be the end of his career with the company. He needed to come up with a plan before he lost everything.

For the rest of the day, Kylo avoided Hux. The temptation for him to strangle the ginger menace proved too strong and he needed to bide his time. Luke Skywalker was refusing to take his calls and he needed to come up with a new strategy. The situation had reached an impasse and so he decided he might as well go back to the hotel. His time with Rey would soon be at an end and he wanted to make the most of it.

He met Phasma on his way out of the office. She gave him a knowing smirk.

"Leaving already, sir?"

Kylo glowered at her.

"We've been sent some complimentary tickets to a selection of West End shows," she informed him. "There are two available for tonight's performance of Miss Saigon - if you fancy it? You could take your - _friend_."

Hux had almost certainly told Phasma the truth about Rey. He snatched the tickets from her hand and stormed through the door. As he walked out of the building, it occurred to him he didn't know why he'd taken them. He knew nothing of musicals and cared even less. But it might be something Rey would enjoy, he contemplated as he journeyed back to the hotel. The limo stopped at a red light and Kylo spotted a jewellery store ahead. A spontaneous compulsion overtook him and he ordered the driver to pull up outside.

* * *

Rey had never been to the theatre before. She vaguely recalled seeing a high school production of Bugsy Malone when she was fourteen. But other than that, the only musicals she'd seen had been on TV or at the cinema. The idea of watching the action unfold before her on stage thrilled her. She put on the red, sleeveless Valentino midi-dress she'd bought, hoping it wasn't too flamboyant with its ruffled collar and a bow at the waist.

"Is this outfit okay?" She inquired stepping out of the bedroom to where Kylo waited for her.

He looked her up and down as he pretended to contemplate the matter. "Hmm, it's pretty spectacular, but there's something missing."

Rey hurried over to the mirror turning around to check her dress from all angles.

"What's missing?" She asked with a hint of panic in her voice. "Because I'm not sure anything else would fit inside this dress."

Kylo reached over to retrieve a black velvet jewellery box from the table. "Maybe this might help," he suggested as he handed it over to her.

Rey gingerly took the box, both excited to see what was inside it and concerned about him spending money on yet another expensive gift.

"Oh, my god!" she exclaimed as her eyes beheld a diamond necklace.

It was an eternity design made up of over a hundred graduated round cut stones set in platinum.

"My grandmother had one just like it. My grandfather gave to her on their wedding day," Kylo explained. "It now belongs to my mother, although I've never seen her wear it."

"I - I don't know what to say," Rey floundered as she ran her finger over the necklace.

"You don't like it?" Kylo worried that it might not be to her taste.

"No," she interjected, "it's not that at all, I - thank you."

Her eyes filled with tears, no one had ever bought her such an exquisite gift. She didn't have the heart to get angry about the money he'd spent, although she guessed it cost a lot more than twenty thousand pounds. He helped her put it on, carefully moving her hair aside. Once he had the clasp fastened, he held her in his arms as they both looked into the mirror.

"Beautiful," he sighed pressing a tender kiss to her cheek.

Kylo got the urge to forget the theatre and fuck her senseless while she wore the necklace and nothing else. But he knew she really wanted to go and he didn't want to deny her the experience. He would fuck her senseless later.

Neither of them knew a thing about Miss Saigon. Kylo bought a program, but they were late arriving at the theatre and only just had time to get into their box seats before the curtain went up. Based on the opera Madame Butterfly, it told the tragic tale of a doomed romance between an orphaned Vietnamese girl, forced into prostitution, and an American GI. The plot turned out to be a little too close to their situation for Kylo's comfort. He suspected mischief on Phasma's part. She surely knew what she was doing by giving him tickets to this particular show. Rey didn't appear to share his mortification and appeared to be transfixed throughout the whole thing. She said little during the interval and Kylo worried she might be upset. But she spent the second act as absorbed in the spectacle as the first. There were tears running down her cheeks by the end, and she gratefully accepted his handkerchief to wipe them away. After the cast took their bows to a thunderous standing ovation, they got up to leave.

"So that was, uh, kinda intense," Kylo said as they stepped out into the cool night air.

"I loved it," Rey declared her eyes still glistening with tears.

"But the ending was so sad," he lamented, having not expected the main female character to commit suicide.

She nodded a thoughtful expression on her face. "People always go on about happily ever after, but it's the tragic love stories that endure. Like Romeo and Juliet or Cathy and Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights. Look at Titanic, that movie was massive and Jack and Rose were only reunited in death."

Kylo didn't argue, he'd never regarded himself as a romantic. Before Rey came into his life, he had kept a tight lock on his heart, never allowing anyone inside. Somehow, without him even realising it, she had found the key.

"Let's get back to the hotel," he said putting his arm around her to stave off the cold. "It's getting late and I have a couple of business calls to make."

"I wish we could spend a whole day together," Rey idly remarked as she snuggled close to him in the back of the limo. It wasn't something she expected to happen. Kylo had to work, it was the reason he came to London in the first place. Still, she pictured them maybe taking a boat trip down the Thames and having a picnic together in Greenwich Park.

Kylo contemplated the possibility of taking a day off. He knew he really ought to keep his eye on Hux and the Skytech deal. But he'd be lying if he said he wasn't tempted. In his six years with Snoke Industries, he could count the holidays he'd taken on the fingers of both hands and still have a few to spare. If there were no messages from his uncle when he checked his phone again, perhaps he could make her wish come true.

* * *

 **In Pretty Woman, Edward takes Vivian to see the opera La traviata (The Fallen Woman) but I wanted to use something a bit more modern with a similar theme. I've never actually seen Miss Saigon (only clips on YouTube) and I should apologise for dropping a big spoiler about the ending, in case anyone reading this is planning on seeing it. - Mrs. P**


	7. Chapter 7

Cinder-Effing-Rella

Chapter 7

The autumn breeze had a chill to it and Rey tugged the sleeves of her cream cardigan down glad she'd slipped it on over her thin floral summer dress. Kylo had hired a small cruiser for their boat trip on the Thames. Thanks to his father, he knew how to navigate on water as well as on land. After stopping on a whim for a tour of Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, they moored up at Greenwich. The park had started to fill up with people eager to make the most of a warm late September day. Kylo vetoed two potential picnic spots for being too crowded leaving Rey desperately hunting for a less populated area.

"How about here?" She pointed hopefully to a sunny patch away from other picnickers and the shade of the trees.

Since leaving the boat, Kylo had been glued to his phone screen. But he tore his gaze away from it long enough to critically survey their surroundings. Alfresco dining wasn't really his style, at least not from a picnic basket. However, Rey wanted to do it and found he couldn't refuse her. She took his lack of reply as a sign of rejection for the third spot she'd chosen. Letting out a puff of exasperation, she moved a little further up the grassy slope and began to unfurl the blanket.

"We're sitting here," she declared her steely glare daring him to argue. "I'm absolutely famished and you can't give your phone your undivided attention if you have to keep finding fault with my location spotting, can you?"

Her joy at Kylo taking the day off work to spend with her began to fade as he paid more attention to checking his messages than to her.

"Sorry," he muttered sheepishly slipping the device into his pocket.

His uncle had finally sent him a text message. He said if Ben called his mother, then they could talk. No amount of re-reading would make it say anything different, he knew that. He missed his mom but he wasn't ready to speak to her yet, why did his uncle have to be so stubborn? Tomorrow could well be the end of SkyTech and Luke Skywalker was once again willing to risk the future of the company for what he regarded as a higher principle. Kylo felt all his old anger and resentment resurfacing. If that's the way his uncle wanted to play it, so be it. Maybe he had made the right choice six years ago when he decided to throw his lot in with Snoke Industries.

Rey couldn't help sneaking glances at him as he lay sprawled out on the grass. She had never seen Kylo dressed so casually and it suited him. He wore a plain black t-shirt and matching jeans with a dark brown leather jacket. But she could see his mind was elsewhere and it pained her.

"You know you didn't have to be out here with me if you have important work to be getting on with." She tried not to sound hurt and failed. "We've only got today and tomorrow night together. I just wanted to… Oh, never mind, it doesn't matter."

A cloud drifted over the sun and it suddenly got colder. Rey began unpacking the contents of the basket, slamming down the plates with such force they might have shattered if they weren't made out of melamine. She took a deep breath to calm herself, knowing she had no right to be upset with him after all he'd done for her.

Kylo caught one of her hands in his and pulled it towards his lips. "Believe me," he implored giving her a smouldering glance, "there's nowhere else on earth I'd rather be right now."

She broke into a wide smile, her distress over his recent distracted behaviour forgotten.

The picnic, which the hotel had put together for them, didn't take long to devour. Kylo had a large appetite to match his frame and Rey always ate every meal as if it might be her last. Old habits she'd picked up in children's homes were hard to break. The other kids would steal her food if she took too long about it, and so she'd learned to eat fast. She sipped at her Champagne, though. Still unaccustomed to the finer things in life. As they glanced out on the city skyline, Kylo fumbled around in the pocket of his jacket and pulled out a small red, leather-bound book. Rey's eyes widened in surprise to see it was a collection of Shakespeare's sonnets. He must have bought it at the gift shop when they'd taken a tour of the Globe Theatre. After watching a sword fighting display and listening to a romantic soliloquy from Romeo and Juliet, he'd obviously been moved to acquaint himself further with the works of the Bard.

Kylo cleared his throat as he fumbled through the pages with his large hands. "I, um, would like to read you something," he began falteringly, his cheeks taking on a pink tinge.

Rey nodded her heart fluttering in anticipation. His deep voice did things to her and she suddenly wished they weren't in such a public place.

Kylo found the page he'd marked with a turned down corner and started to read aloud…

 _"_ _When, in disgrace with fortune and men's eyes,  
I all alone beweep my outcast state,  
And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries,  
And look upon myself, and curse my fate,  
Wishing me like to one more rich in hope,  
Featur'd like him, like him with friends possess'd,  
Desiring this man's art and that man's scope,  
With what I most enjoy contented least;  
Yet in these thoughts myself almost despising,  
Haply I think on thee, and then my state,  
Like to the lark at break of day arising  
From sullen earth, sings hymns at heaven's gate;  
For thy sweet love remember'd such wealth brings  
That then I scorn to change my state with kings."_

He glanced up at her to find her brushing away a tear.

"That's so beautiful," Rey sniffed.

He could give her a hundred diamond necklaces and none of them would be as precious to her as the moment he'd just spent reciting that sonnet. Grateful and touched as she'd been by his expensive gift, the best things in life really were free as far as she was concerned. She leaned in to thank him by pressing a lingering kiss to his cheek. It soon escalated until they were rolling around on the picnic blanket, in danger of putting on a public display of their passion.

"I want you so bad," Kylo drawled in her ear.

Rey felt her arousal soaking through her underwear and making the tops of her thighs damp. "There must be a quiet spot around here somewhere," she gasped, desperate to have him inside her.

Their eyes scanned the landscape until they simultaneously spied a wooded area at the top of the hill. The crowds had started to thin as most of the lunchtime picnickers headed back to work or went to resume their sightseeing. It would be a risky venture, giving way to their passion in a public place, but lust made them reckless.

"Grab the blanket and leave the rest," Kylo commanded.

He tugged impatiently at her hand as the pair of them bounded up the hill towards the woodland. Fallen leaves dotted the ground as the lush greens of summer gave way to the melancholic golds and reds of autumn. The foliage mercifully remained thick enough to hide them from prying eyes. In the midst of fevered kisses to his face and neck, Rey tossed the blanket to the ground. Kylo pushed her up against a thick tree trunk and she could feel the rough bark grating her back through her thin clothing. With one hand, he trailed his fingers up the soft skin of her thighs and yanked down her soaked panties.

"Lie down on the blanket," she instructed him her eyes burning with desire.

He did as she asked unbuckling his belt and unzipping his jeans. His erection strained against his boxers as she knelt down to free him. She kicked off her underwear and straddled him, wasting no time in impaling herself on his hard cock. He let out a hiss of pleasure as her velvet heat encased him. The flared skirt of her dress covered them where they were joined, not that it would disguise the true nature of their activities should they be discovered. But neither of them cared.

"You feel so good inside me," Rey purred as she rode him.

"You're always so wet for me," Kylo gazed up at her in awe.

He wet his fingers and sought out her clit circling it in time with her hips.

"Oh," she gasped increasing her pace. "I'm going to come all over your magnificent cock."

Kylo held onto her waist and thrust his hips up to meet hers. Both of them were racing frantically towards their peak. She crested first and it didn't take long for him to follow. He mouthed at her tits through the thin fabric of her dress to muffle the aftershocks of his orgasm.

If the old man walking his Fox Terrier nearby saw or heard anything he shouldn't have, he gave no indication of it.

Rey watched the dog walker pass and collapsed into giggles against Kylo's chest. "That was so naughty but oh — so nice."

He wrapped his arms around her tenderly pressing his lips to her forehead. Something had changed in him. He wasn't sure what exactly, only that he felt different. Perhaps it was because with each day he spent with Rey, the innate loneliness he'd felt ever since childhood had slowly been ebbing away. She fitted with him so perfectly, as if she was the missing piece he'd been unwittingly searching for all his life.

For her part, Rey had never been as contented as when she was nestled in his embrace. It wasn't the sex, mind-blowing as it was. But rather, a sense of belonging. No one in her life, except Finn, had ever made her feel as if she mattered. Kylo treated her with respect. He didn't think less of her for her humble beginnings or for the choices she'd made to survive. Foolish as she knew it to be, to let herself get so attached to him, Rey couldn't help it. It broke her heart that he would soon be heading back to New York. He might as well live on another planet for all the opportunity she'd have of ever bumping into him again. But she knew it would do no good to dwell on it, especially if she wanted to enjoy the short time they had left together.

Kylo felt her shiver in his arms, putting it down to the cold, he got up and pulled her to her feet alongside him.

"We should head back to the boat," he said making sure his jeans were fastened.

He handed Rey the blanket so she could clean herself as best she could, promising her a long soak in a hot bath before he took her out for dinner. Kylo grabbed her discarded underwear and stuffed them in his pocket along with the book of sonnets. Somewhere along the way, he had fallen in love with her and it terrified him.

* * *

After dinner, Kylo and Rey took a walk together by the Thames. The stars were barely visible in the clear night sky because of the light pollution. But the moon shone brightly, its silver beams reflecting on the inky waters of the river below them. Kylo couldn't stop dwelling on his uncle's message. He wanted to heal the rift with his family, but he didn't know how to begin. After six years of estrangement from them, he worried they wouldn't want him back at all.

Earlier, while Rey had taken her bath, he'd typed his mother's number into his phone. He sat staring at the Call button for what seemed like an eternity. When it came to it, he couldn't go through with it. In the space of a week, his carefully constructed life had begun falling to pieces. His realisation about the depth of his feelings for Rey had shaken him to the core. If he confessed his love only for her to reject him - Kylo knew he wouldn't be able to handle it. And even if she did want to be with him, it might not work out. He had never been in love before or sustained a relationship for more than a couple of weeks. It would be much better for him, he resolved, if he concluded his business in the way he had originally intended. Snoke Industries would acquire SkyTech for a bargain price and he would take the company apart like the old man wanted. He had to let go of the past and his foolish dreams for the future. Six years ago, he had chosen a life in New York and it was almost time to get back to it.

"Is everything alright?" Rey inquired giving him a worried look. "You've gone awfully quiet."

In an attempt to disguise her inner turmoil over the way she felt about him, she'd ended up wittering on endlessly about the artsy food they'd been served at the restaurant. She feared she had bored him to death with her thoughts on the mint sorbet. Kylo moved in circles where a person needed four different forks to get through dinner. To her embarrassment, she couldn't tell a salad fork from a dessert fork. When she wasn't being wined and dined by a millionaire, Rey lived on pizza and barely used cutlery at all.

Kylo gazed into her eyes and tried to memorise every fleck of colour within her hazel orbs. His attention then turned to mapping the freckles across her nose. As they stood bathed in moonlight, he imagined kissing her as if they were in a romantic movie. What he would give to press his lips to hers like they had all the time in the world. "Let's go back to the hotel," he suggested his voice low and seductive. The days they had spent together would become a fond and precious memory for him. Something he could summon for comfort when the loneliness got too much to bear. He rested his head against hers as she nestled into his arms in the back of the limo. At that moment, he knew perfect contentment.

Once they arrived at the hotel, Kylo had a few messages from his New York office he needed to catch up on. He got ready for bed first so he could get the work out of the way while Rey used the bathroom. The prospect of what he was about to do to his family's business gave him no pleasure. He wanted to forget about it for a while and make some more memories with the woman he loved. It didn't take him long to answer his outstanding emails and he closed up his laptop and waited for Rey to reappear. He only meant to rest his eyes for a few seconds but ended up dozing off.

Rey called Finn from the bathroom in a state of desperation.

"Calm down, babe," he pleaded as she babbled on.

"I need you to come to the hotel tomorrow morning, I have to talk to you in person," she explained as clearly as she could in her emotional state.

"What's going on?" Finn asked his concern for her growing. "Is it that Kylo bloke? Has he upset you?"

She took a shuddering breath unable to stop her tears from falling. "It is about Kylo, but it's nothing bad… Well, it's not exactly good, either. I mean, you warned me about getting in too deep and I still couldn't help it. He is so sweet and sexy and I don't know what the hell to do. He's going back to New York soon and I can't bear the thought of losing him."

"Oh, Rey," Finn sighed wishing he could give her a big hug. "It's late, but I think you should come home right now or at least first thing in the morning. Don't stay that last night with him. You're gonna end up saying something you'll regret and he will break your heart."

"It's already breaking," she wept. "But I want to stay here with him."

Finn could tell it would be pointless to argue. "I'll meet you outside the hotel tomorrow morning. Call me when you're ready. We'll talk about it then, okay?"

Rey agreed and they said their goodnights. She splashed cold water on her face and took deep breaths to calm herself. Kylo would be wondering what was taking her so long. She finished up and stepped into the bedroom to find him asleep. He had propped himself up against the pillows, his bare chest exposed by the blankets pooled around his waist and his raven hair falling over his face in waves. Rey inched closer to the bed. He looked so peaceful, she almost didn't want to wake him. She sat down by his side and gazed at him for a while imagining an impossible future. Hiring her services for a week was one thing, but he'd already told her he wasn't looking to get into a relationship. For all the wonderful things Kylo had done for her, he never once spoke of extending their arrangement. Not that she wanted him to keep paying her for sex, but she did want to see him again. Rey tore her gaze away from him with a sorrowful sigh. She had never had a proper boyfriend. Her line of work wasn't exactly relationship friendly. Not that she intended to be a prostitute forever, but she hadn't even tried to find a guy who wouldn't mind her sleeping with other men for money.

Kylo stirred in his sleep muttering something she couldn't quite make out. His sensual lips looked so tempting. Her no kissing on the mouth rule, be damned, Rey couldn't help herself. She leaned in, brushing his lips gently with her own. His eyes flew open and he kissed her back with an unexpected intensity. He had been wanting to taste her lips every bit as much as she wanted to taste his. She could feel his excitement growing as he eased her down onto the bed, his mouth never leaving hers. He kicked off his pyjama bottoms and she wriggled out of her white silk slip. No words were exchanged. None were needed as their bodies moved together in perfect sync.

When they were both sated, they laid blissfully exhausted in each other's arms. Enough time had passed in silence that Rey thought Kylo had fallen asleep. She held tight to him wishing he knew how much he meant to her.

"I love you," she whispered relieved to confess it even if he couldn't hear.

Kylo opened his eyes, unsure if he'd been caught in a dream. Rey appeared to be sleeping and so he concluded he must have imagined it. Heaving a wistful sigh, he buried his face in her hair fantasising about a life that could never be.

* * *

 **The Shakespeare sonnet I used in this chapter is the one that Edward reads to Vivian during the scene in Pretty Woman where they are laid out on the grass together - Mrs. P**


	8. Chapter 8

Cinder-Effing-Rella

Chapter 8

Rey slept heavier than she expected to given her inner turmoil. The clock by the bed told her it had already turned eight which meant Finn would be arriving in less than an hour. She still didn't know what she wanted to do. If she stayed with Kylo that night, it would only make it harder on her when they had to part. But she wasn't ready for their time together to come to an end. One more night was better than nothing. She glanced at the empty space beside her and gave a wistful sigh.

Kylo had almost finished his breakfast when she stepped out of the bedroom wearing just her silk robe. She didn't waste time dressing worried he might already have left for the office.

Rey took a seat beside him at the table. "You should have woken me."

"I had to work." He gestured to his laptop, a pensive expression on his face.

She fidgeted with her napkin; there were so many things she wanted to say but he seemed too distant and distracted. With the imminent conclusion of the SkyTech deal, he was bound to be stressed. He hadn't wanted to discuss it whenever she raised the subject and so she let it be.

In truth, Kylo had been mostly preoccupied with devising some way he could see Rey again. He still wanted to help her make a better future for herself, even if there was no place for him in it. She wouldn't accept a handout, but she might be willing to enter into some kind of business arrangement, he'd speculated.

"I, um, don't usually get over to London more than a couple of times a year, but, um…" he began his hesitant tone betraying his uncertainty regarding her response. "I would like to see you again."

Rey's heart leapt. "You would?" She broke into a wide smile daring to dream he shared her feelings.

His mood brightened, hopeful she would accept his offer. "I was thinking I could fly over here for a weekend maybe once every couple of months. I could rent an apartment for you, get you a car, and arrange a bank account, whatever you want. You could go to college; I would take care of everything. What do you say?"

Her face fell, he wasn't offering her his heart. All he wanted was a continuation of their present arrangement however he tried to dress it up. Rey couldn't do it, not with him. Her regular clients were one thing, she wasn't in love with any of them. But to keep seeing Kylo with no hope of anything beyond financial gain would break her. To accept would be to keep fooling herself that she could one day be more to him than a business transaction.

She met his expectant gaze. "It's a really great offer, and I don't want you to think I'm not grateful, but I can't."

Rey got up and walked out onto the small balcony, the autumnal air fresh against her skin. Kylo stared at her back unsure of what to do next. He couldn't understand her rejection of his generous proposal. No expense would be spared and she wouldn't have to sell her body to anyone else. Not that she would be selling it to him, she was worth so much more than that.

He moved to stand beside her as she gazed out on the streets below, her hair whipping around in the breeze. "I thought we had a good time together. Now it seems like you can't wait to be rid of me."

Rey swung around to face him confused that he looked and sounded so hurt. "How can you think that?" She gasped. "It's not that at all. This past week with you has been like a fairytale come true. But fairy tales don't usually end with the prince getting his own personal prostitute."

"It wouldn't be like that. I've never thought of you that way," Kylo argued. "You could be anything you wanted to be."

"Well, I'd certainly need something to pass the time in between your flying visits," Rey huffed giving into her anger.

"What else can I offer you?" He threw his hands up in the air perplexed by her attitude. "I don't know what you want from me."

She took a deep breath and decided to lay her heart on the line. "I want you," she declared. "Not the money or all those other fancy things, just you."

Kylo gazed at her in bewilderment too shocked to speak.

Rey waited for him to say something, anything, but the silence became deafening. Both of them jolted when his phone started to ring.

Seeing Hux's name come up on the screen, Kylo knew he had to answer it. "What?" he growled into the speaker.

Hux bristled at his rude tone but got straight down to business. "Paolo Dameron called; he wants to meet with us. Skywalker might be willing to see his company go down the tubes but his partner has got more sense. Better to sell to us than go bankrupt."

"What time's the meeting?" Kylo's mind raced ahead; he couldn't let SkyTech be dismantled, not now. Rey wanted him and if he swallowed his pride, he could give her the family and stability she so desperately craved. He had to make things right, somehow.

"The meeting is set for eleven, and don't be late. I'll have the paperwork ready." Hux ended the call and allowed himself a moment to preen over his success. There would be no deal without him and he expected his efforts to be rewarded.

The cool breeze chilled Rey to the bone as she stood on the balcony in her thin silk robe, but she couldn't move until she got some response to her declaration.

Kylo appeared deep in thought, almost like he'd forgotten she was there. He made another brief call before returning his phone to his jacket pocket. A sick feeling settled in her stomach; her words had obviously horrified him and he was working on a way to get out of there as fast as he could. He eventually turned to meet her gaze, although she could see he would rather be anywhere else but in her company.

"I, um - I'm sorry, I've got to be somewhere." Kylo fumbled around for his coat and grabbed his briefcase from the chair. "There's not much time and I really have to go. But I promise we'll talk later, okay?"

With that, he practically ran out of the door leaving Rey alone and devastated.

Kylo hadn't meant to be insensitive. It occurred to him, as the limo pulled away from the hotel, he should have kissed her and said something about how much he wanted her too. He vowed he would make up it up to her after he saved SkyTech. For now, business and mending fences with his family had to be his top priority. The clock was ticking and he had less than three hours to undo the damage that had been accrued over many years. He would have to cover a lot of ground in that time.

* * *

Rey managed to get showered and dressed without completely falling to pieces. Finn would soon be outside waiting for her and, although Kylo might not want her, her best friend would never let her down. She grabbed her bag and headed for the door. The sky above her looked grey and stormy as she made her way onto the street. Finn stood on the pavement a few metres ahead leaning awkwardly on his crutches, his warm smile a welcome sight. She greeted him with a hug and they made their way the short distance from the hotel to Grosvenor Square Gardens. The place appeared to be mostly empty, perhaps due to the threat of rain, and they took a seat by the Grecian folly.

Finn clutched her hand in his "It hurts me to see you looking so sad, peanut."

"I'll be okay," Rey said forcing a smile. "I've known him less than a week; I can't actually be in love with him. You know how easily attached I can get to people who are kind to me. It's pathetic really; you'd think I'd know better by now."

"Don't be so hard on yourself." Her friend gazed at her adoringly. "You've got a big heart, and there ain't no shame in that."

"It's just - I've never felt this way about a guy before and I thought he felt it too." She blinked back the tears and fanned at her face.

Finn reached into his pocket and offered her a packet of tissues but she waved them away insisting she would be fine.

"What do you want to do?" He asked. "I'll wait here for you if you want to go back to the hotel and get your stuff."

Rey sniffed back fresh tears. "Kylo hasn't given me the money yet, and I need it because I can't keep doing this. I know I'm worth more and even if he doesn't love me, he wants me to have a better life." She told Finn all about his offer to support her financially in exchange for the odd debauched weekend.

"He must care about you." Her friend would always be on her side but he felt obliged to play devil's advocate in light of the generosity of the deal. "It could grow into love. I mean, he wants to keep seeing you, right?"

Rey threw him a sceptical glance. "It would only be prolonging the agony. Life's not a fairytale, Finn, you know that. I'm certainly not Cinder-Fucking-Rella and Kylo's no Prince Charming. He's a moody sod. But he has the cutest, softest pouty lips that make me want to..." She stopped short stifling the urge to slap herself for going mushy over him. "Anyway, I'll wait for him to get back to the hotel and once he's paid up, I'm out of there."

She didn't expect Kylo to object to her leaving, not after his vanishing act when she'd told him she wanted him. He would no doubt welcome the opportunity to bring a premature end to their arrangement. It wasn't as if he hadn't been clear when he told her he would rather deal in cold hard cash than invest in relationships. Rey broke their contract by falling in love with him, and for that, she would have to pay the price.

* * *

Kylo arrived at the offices of Snoke Industries with mere minutes to spare before the start of the meeting. He could only hope he'd done enough to secure the future of SkyTech. Speaking with his mother had been the hardest part. She had been genuinely happy to hear his voice, making his task easier for him after she confessed to carrying a burden of guilt for pushing him in Snoke's direction in the first place. He promised to FaceTime her and his father later and maybe introduce them to Rey - if she felt ready to meet his parents. All kinds of crazy thoughts had been running through his head, like how long he should wait before proposing. Given the difference in their ages, she might not be ready for that kind of commitment. It would be an adjustment for them both. He decided he would ask her to move in with him first and take it from there.

"Where have you been?" Hux questioned his irritation clear as he stood waiting outside the conference room door.

"I had important business elsewhere." Kylo shrugged off his coat unruffled by Hux's contemptuous glare.

"Everyone's already here, even Skywalker. It looks like the old goat's finally seen sense," he sneered.

Kylo allowed Hux to lead the way. Phasma had been keeping the coffee flowing inside the conference room and she made the formal introductions as they took their seats. If everything had gone to plan, Luke Skywalker should be getting an important phone call at any second. He and Paolo Dameron were seated on the right-hand side of the table with their legal advisor, a shrewd-looking young Asian woman called Rose Tico. Kylo took the seat at the head of the table with Hux, Phasma and Mitaka, their jittery legal advisor, to his left. He acknowledged his uncle with a nod of his head silently hoping everything would work out. When Skywalker's phone started to ring, Kylo heaved a sigh of relief.

The conversation was brief and Luke cast his nephew a strange glance as he ended the call. He leant in to whisper something into his business partner's ear before addressing the room. "Well, it appears that this meeting won't be necessary after all," he said with as much contrition as he could muster. "I must apologise for wasting your time."

Hux looked fit to explode. "Would you mind telling me what the fuck is going on here?" His clipped tones cut through the air like a shard of glass.

"SkyTech is solvent again," Luke explained. "A new investor has come forward and our debts with the bank have been settled. Our place in the military defence contract negotiations has been assured and the Minister of Defence has indicated we are the preferred bidder." He couldn't contain his glee and he cast a grateful smile in his nephew's direction.

The action didn't go unnoticed by Hux. He glared through narrowed eyes at the man he suspected of duplicity. Snoke would hear about this and he would get proof that Ren had conspired against them.

"Well ladies, gentleman, it's been an unexpected pleasure," Paolo Dameron beamed as he got up to leave.

Kylo intended to have a quick word with his uncle and then return to the hotel to tell Rey everything. He had also been contemplating reclaiming his birth name. With his time at Snoke Industries almost over, he decided to tender his resignation directly to the old man upon his return to New York. For Snoke's past solicitude, particularly when it came to his career, he owed him that much at least.

Once the SkyTech contingent had left, Hux turned to Ren, his cold blue eyes full of scorn.

"You don't fool me, _Ben Solo_ ," he hissed. "I know you're behind this somehow."

Kylo didn't care what he suspected. "You can't win them all," he shrugged. "Since my business here is now concluded, I'm going back to the hotel to pack." He grabbed his coat and headed for the door. "Thank you for your hospitality, Armitage."

He left Hux fuming, his rival's deliberate use of his Christian name serving to further inflame his indignation.

"Phasma, I'm going to call Randolph Snoke and I'm not to be disturbed," he snapped as he swept into his office slamming the door behind him.

* * *

Rey packed her new clothes and shoes back into the bags they came in. The black velvet jewellery box containing the diamond necklace sat on the dresser. She picked it up and opened it, sighing as she ran her finger over the stones before snapping it closed. Kylo bought it for her as a gift just because he thought she might like it, but she couldn't keep it. She had no use for such a trinket and she wouldn't feel right selling it. Setting it aside, she continued to gather her things together. Kylo had been gone for hours and it helped to keep busy while she waited for him to return.

A knock at the door startled her. She went to answer it wondering if he'd forgotten his key card that morning in his haste to leave. Instead, she found the stern face of Armitage Hux staring back at her.

"Well, Miss Sands, we meet again," he said his smile cold and cruel. "I need to speak with Kylo or whatever he's calling himself these days."

Rey frowned as she puzzled his meaning.

"Do I have to stand out here all afternoon?" Hux dispensed with any pretence at politeness.

"Kylo's not here. I thought he was at the office with you," she replied not wanting to let him in.

"I'll wait then," he said as he barged past her and plonked himself down on the couch. "A drink wouldn't go amiss."

"The mini bar is over there." Rey pointed to the small fridge not caring if she was being a bad hostess. "Help yourself, why don't you?"

He threw her a scornful glance as he went to select his beverage. All she could do was hope Kylo would return as soon as possible. As much as she'd been dreading seeing him again, anything had to be preferable to being alone with Hux. She seated herself as far along the couch from him as possible, cringing when he sidled up close to her.

"So, how much do you charge?" He asked raising an eyebrow in curiosity as he swirled his glass of whisky.

Rey drew away from him in horror.

"Oh, come now, don't be so coy," Hux scolded. "Perhaps we could find a more pleasant way to pass the time. My soon-to-be fiancée is a first-class woman but she doesn't have your repertoire."

There, fortunately, hadn't been many opportunities for her to use the self-defence techniques she'd learned over the years, but Rey wouldn't hesitate if he touched her. "Kylo will be home any minute," she reminded him. "Back the fuck off."

Hux downed his whisky and slammed the glass on the table. "This isn't home, sweetheart. You're his paid cum-bucket, not his wife."

His words cut deep. Angry tears welled up in her eyes and she turned away, she shouldn't have let him get to her.

He pretended to be contrite muttering a lame apology before shuffling closer to her. "I'll level with you, it's been one hell of a day. I could do with a bit of stress relief."

Rey tried to scoot past him but he moved swiftly to block her escape.

"Get the hell away from me," she commanded ready to lash out at him.

"Don't be like that," he chided taking a step towards her. "I'll pay the going rate."

She kicked his shin and made a run for it.

"Come back here, you little bitch," Hux snarled as he grabbed her wrist.

"Get your hands off me," Rey shrieked struggling and slapping at him with all her might.

Neither of them heard the door open. The next thing she knew, Kylo charged in and grabbed Hux around the neck.

"How dare you touch her?"

Kylo increased his choke hold hauling the other man to the door where he finally released him.

Hux, red-faced and spluttering, attempted to regain his composure. "She's a fucking cheap whore," he rasped.

Without warning, Kylo swung his fist around and punched him square in the face sending him crashing to the floor with a bloody nose.

"We are done. And if I ever see you anywhere near Rey again, I'll kill you," he threatened.

"You're finished at Snoke Industries, Ren," Hux spat as he reached for his handkerchief.

"I know, and my name's Ben Solo," he hissed through clenched teeth as he slammed the door in the other man's face.

It took him a moment to reign in his temper. If Rey hadn't been there, he would have done Hux some serious damage. He couldn't bear to see another man laying his hands on her. She put on a brave face but he could see she was trembling. There were tears in her eyes as he wrapped his arms around her.

"It's okay," he soothed stroking her hair. "I won't let anyone hurt you again."

Rey eased out of his embrace and went to get her coat from the bed where she'd left it. Ben's eyes fell upon the bags she'd stacked outside the bedroom and a bolt of panic shot through him.

"What's going on?" He asked his stomach churning in fear.

She hadn't expected things to unfold the way they did. After what happened with Hux, she needed to get out of there. She couldn't take any more drama.

"I want to go home," Rey said feeling like a lost little girl again.

"You want to what? I don't understand." Ben glanced back at the bags, it wasn't a spur of the moment thing, she had been planning to leave.

"I'm sorry, I got carried away this morning. I didn't mean what I said." She turned her gaze away from him hoping he wouldn't be able to tell she was lying. "I've had a great time but all good things must come to an end. If you want to deduct something from the twenty grand because I'm not staying tonight, I'll understand."

He was too stunned to speak. His eyes fell on the black jewellery box she'd left on the nightstand.

"It was sweet of you to buy it for me," Rey said noting him staring at the necklace. "But I can't keep it."

Ben felt as if he might vomit. All the plans he'd been building for their future were crumbling before him. This wasn't the way it was supposed to go.

"I don't have all the money ready yet." He sounded dazed as he located his briefcase and took out a wad of crisp notes. "I've only got five thousand here."

Rey didn't know what to do. Hesitantly, she took the cash and put it in her bag before finding a piece of paper to scribble her address on.

"You can send the rest here," she said as she went to grab her things.

The words he needed to say to stop her leaving were on his lips but he couldn't get them out.

Willing herself to stay strong, Rey turned to look at him for one last time. "Goodbye, Ben," she smiled glad to be able to address him by his real name for once. "Thank you, for everything. I had a good time, the best, and I'll never forget you."

All he could do was watch her leave.

* * *

 **Argh, more angst. Sorry! We have reached the point Pretty Woman-wise where It Must Have Been Love by Roxette is playing and everything seems hopeless. This is the penultimate chapter so I had to fit in quite a few twists and turns. I hope it wasn't too disorientating. - Mrs. P**


	9. Chapter 9

Cinder-Effing-Rella

Chapter 9

Ben stood in a stupor not quite believing what had just transpired. His eyes drifted around the room taking in a number of breakable objects and lingering on a crystal vase that, once upon a time, he would have sent crashing into the nearest wall. But now, he found he didn't have the heart to do it. With a dejected sigh, he walked towards the bed and flopped face down onto it. His phone started to buzz but he ignored it. After he'd received half a dozen missed calls, Ben pulled the device out of his pocket ready to smash it into pieces. However, when he saw his mother's name displayed on the screen, he reluctantly answered.

"Mom, I screwed up again and I don't know how to fix it."

* * *

Rey hailed a cab, leaving behind the opulence of the hotel without a second glance. The only thing she would miss about it was the man she'd left there. But he hadn't made any attempt to get her to stay, and it stung. She didn't realise she'd mistaken his stunned heartbreak for indifference. All she could think was that he didn't even say goodbye to her. Rey gazed out of the taxi window as she recalled their last night together. Kylo made love to her so tenderly, almost reverently, and they had been as connected as two people could be. She had felt so close to him. Maybe he just got scared about the commitment, she mused, turning it over in her mind until it drove her crazy. Rey gave herself a mental shake, she couldn't go on thinking like that. Whatever she'd shared with Kylo, or Ben, she supposed, was over. Perhaps it had all been nothing but an illusion in the end.

Finn met her at the door of their shared second floor flat with a hug and a box of her favourite chocolates.

"You're the man of my dreams, do you know that?" She teased him fondly, glad to be home.

"Damn straight," he winked. "Look, babe, if you want to talk about…"

Rey put her finger to his lips to stop him from going any further. "No, no talking about anything tonight but boxes, bitches, and back rolls."

Finn gave her the thumbs up sign. "Perfect, because I've already got the pizzas ordered and RuPaul's Drag Race is good to go on Netflix."

"You know me too well," she said dumping her bags in her room. The unpacking could wait. Every piece of clothing would only stir up memories of the past week and she wasn't ready to deal with it just yet.

"Right, let's get this party started." Rey smiled brightly, a little too brightly Finn thought, but he didn't say anything.

The pair of them huddled up on their small couch, happy to be distracted from life's cares for a while.

* * *

Ben lay sprawled on the bed mulling over his mother's advice. He turned to the empty space beside him, his hand resting where Rey should be. An awful feeling of dread crept over him at the idea he might never see her again, and he didn't even know where she lived. At that moment, his eyes fell upon the piece of paper that he half-remembered her scribbling her address on. He leapt from the bed and snatched it up, clutching it to his chest. Faint heart never won fair maiden, he told himself. If he truly wanted Rey, he would have to make a grand gesture. She had said she didn't want money or fancy things, only him. But then, she had backtracked saying she'd got carried away and didn't want him after all. Ben sank back down against the pillows, what if she rejected him? His mind drifted to the last time they'd been together on that bed. He thought of the way she'd melted into his kisses, of how her body responded to his every touch as he'd buried himself as deep inside her as he could get. His cock twitched at the memory of being encased in her velvet heat. After reaching the heights of ecstasy together, he'd held her and heard her whisper that she loved him. Her words were sincere, he'd felt it. Ben knew he would stop at nothing to win her back.

Before he could get out of the door, he got a call from the hotel reception. Snoke Industries had settled the bill for his stay and had been told he would be vacating the room with immediate effect. Ben knew it to be Hux's doing, the ginger weasel's pettiness knew no bounds. As he'd been forced to liquidate most of his assets to help keep SkyTech afloat, he would need to find a cheaper hotel. His mind drifted back to Rey - perhaps he could find a bed for the night with her, and for the rest of his life, if he was lucky. Without delay, Ben packed up his belongings. He grabbed the jewellery box from the nightstand, determined to deliver the necklace back into the hands of its rightful owner. His mom had offered him his grandmother Padmé's diamond engagement ring to give to Rey, should the need arise. The more he thought about it, the more certain he became that he couldn't live without her. Ben glanced again at the address on the piece of paper, 218 Falcon Road, Flat 7, Bermondsey. His fate awaited him.

* * *

Finn had done all he could to keep Rey's mind off her woes. She tried to enter into the fun of their Netflix marathon, but he could tell her heart wasn't in it. When she excused herself to take a hot bath and have an early night, he didn't try to stop her. He must have dozed off on the couch because the sound of knocking woke him up with a start.

"Alright, I'm coming," he grumbled as he hauled himself up with the aid of his crutches.

A glance at the clock told him it was well after ten and they weren't expecting any visitors, especially ones who called at that time of night. Whoever it was had started knocking again, and more forcefully than before. Finn glanced through the peephole to find a tall, dark, distinctive looking man in black clothing and a brown leather jacket standing outside. He sucked in a breath; it couldn't be, could it? The noise had likely woken up the woman he'd come in search of - if she had even managed to fall asleep in the first place.

Finn opened the door as far as the safety chain would allow it and peered out. "What do you want?" He inquired, not disposed to be welcoming to the guy who'd broken his best friend's heart.

"Is Rey home? I really need to speak with her," Ben pleaded.

Finn noted his stack of luggage with confusion. "What's going on?" He questioned his eyes narrowing with suspicion. "If you've come to cause her more grief, I'll kick your arse, broken leg or not."

Never a patient man, Ben did his best to exercise self-restraint. "Look, Fran…"

"It's Finn," he cut in with exasperation.

"I knew it started with an F. Anyway, I'm sorry, it's been a really long day and I really need to see Rey right now."

At that moment, the door to her bedroom opened and she stepped out.

"It's him," Finn mouthed as she fought the urge to run back to her room and lock the door.

Her eyes were red from crying and she'd put on her comfortable old pyjamas with the little space rockets on. She took a deep breath and rubbed her tearstained face. "Let him in."

Finn slid the safety chain off, casting the much taller man a wary look as he allowed him entry.

"Rey," Ben gasped as he stepped closer to her.

She backed away a little hugging herself and hating that he made her feel so vulnerable.

"What about your bags?" Finn questioned.

It looked like expensive stuff, and it wouldn't survive long unattended in their neighbourhood.

Ben's had his attention fixed firmly on the young woman in front of him. Nothing else mattered. She looked adorable but so very sad.

Finn huffed as he set down one of his crutches and did his best to drag the bags inside. "Hey," he protested as he continued to struggle. "A little help here would be nice." His pleas fell on deaf ears.

Rey didn't know what to make of Ben turning up on her doorstep. She stood facing him waiting for him to explain himself. He had paused to muster up his courage, momentarily unable to say anything beyond her name.

"Well?" She threw him an expectant glare.

He raked a hand through his hair, as she'd noticed he tended to do when he was nervous.

Suddenly, Ben fell to his knees before her and gazed up at her with hope-filled eyes. "I love you Rey, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you - if you'll have me."

His puppy dog expression was her undoing and she exploded in a mix of sobs and giggles. "I thought you didn't want me," she cried.

Ben captured her hand in his and kissed it over and over. "Oh, my angel, I want you more than I've ever wanted anyone or anything and I should have said so this morning."

"Then why didn't you?" She asked unable to entirely banish her hurt.

"I was too focused on saving SkyTech," he confessed. "That's why Hux was so pissed off, and why I'm currently between hotels. I haven't officially tendered my resignation to Snoke Industries, but Hux has already cut my expenses off. I'm not going to fight it even though I could. I know where the bodies are buried, metaphorically speaking, so Snoke Industries will have to tread carefully. I'll make sure they understand that if they go after SkyTech again, I can make a lot of trouble for them."

Ben smirked as he thought about how he'd got the Minister of Defence to reverse his decision on SkyTech bidding for the military contracts. He even got him to go as far as giving them preferred bidder status. He wouldn't call it blackmail, his secret surveillance and information gathering had merely been an insurance policy. His intimate knowledge of how Snoke Industries worked convinced him early on in his career with the company that he would have need of it.

He gave her a sheepish look. "I hope you meant it when you said you didn't care about the money because I've poured most of my capital into SkyTech. My uncle intends to make me a full partner once I've settled things with Snoke. But I've dropped from a seven-figure annual salary to something a lot more modest."

It wouldn't matter to her if he didn't have a penny to his name, she loved him.

He stayed on his knees and Rey gazed down at him, attempting to get it all straight in her head. "So, when you said you wanted to spend the rest of your life with me, does that mean you're asking me to marry you?"

Ben smiled, "Only if that's what you want. I mean we can wait a while if you're not ready for that, maybe try living together first to make sure I won't drive you crazy," he suggested happy to go with whatever she decided as long as they could be together.

She contemplated it for a few seconds before tugging on his hand in an effort to drag him towards her bedroom. It might be insane, given that she'd known him less than a week, but it felt so right.

"Is that a yes?" Ben asked, hardly believing his luck as he got up off of his knees.

Rey threw her arms around his neck and pulled him in for a passionate kiss. "Yes," she shrieked. "A thousand times, yes."

"Hang on, yes to getting married or yes to living together?"

"Yes to all of it," she beamed tugging on his hand again.

He grinned as Rey opened her bedroom door and pulled him inside.

"Congratulations!" Finn yelled out after them.

It seemed they'd forgotten he was there. He rolled his eyes as he heard the sound of squeaking bed springs. Happy as he was for his best friend, he didn't need to eavesdrop on what they were doing in the next room. He went into his own and popped his earbuds in, putting his iPod on shuffle.

Ben pressed his lips together in an attempt to muffle his cries. Rey had wasted no time in stripping off his clothes and her own. She pushed him back on the bed and went down on him before he could say a word. He fisted his hands in her freshly washed hair as she sucked greedily on his cock, her appreciative moans making him rock hard. She pumped him steadily with one hand, her fingertips brushing lightly over his balls with the other.

"I'm not gonna last long like this," he warned.

Rey drew back making a soft popping sound with her lips as they slipped from him. "Then don't," she said before sucking him with renewed vigour.

Ben gave up trying to suppress his vocal appreciation as her fingers gripped the length of his shaft, pumping him harder. Her clever mouth took in almost every inch of him. She had a way of swirling her tongue around the swollen head of his cock that brought him to the edge of bliss. One more pump of her wrist and he came with a throaty roar. She kept sucking until she'd swallowed every last drop of his hot cum.

"Oh, my precious Rey," Ben murmured as she released him with a smile of satisfaction.

As soon as he recovered his senses, he flipped her on her back determined to return the favour. Her cunt was already dripping with arousal. He ran his tongue over her, paying special attention to her sensitive clit. Her soft moans spurred him on as his generous mouth and thick fingers worked her into a frenzy of desire. She grasped at his raven hair needing something to anchor her as she came hard against his tongue. Ben gave her no time to recover before shifting position and burying himself deep inside her. The sensation almost undid him as her silky cum coated his cock. He shuddered with pleasure and began thrusting into her. She wasn't expecting to orgasm again so soon, but she felt another release building with every stroke.

Ben held her gaze as they neared completion. "I love you so much," he said.

"I love you too," Rey gasped before her senses got stolen by another earth-shattering climax.

He followed her over the edge, kissing her before collapsing onto the mattress panting for breath. She draped herself over him, his large frame covering almost the entirety of her bed, as they waited for their heart rates to return to normal.

Her room was small, Ben noted as he glanced around it properly for the first time; he'd seen bigger walk-in closets. There were pictures and postcards pinned to a large notice board. Various keepsakes were scattered across a small wooden shelf, including a little rag doll in an orange outfit.

Rey drew lazy circles on his chest with her fingers. Much as she didn't want to be parted from him, she presumed he still had to leave tomorrow. "How long will you be in New York?"

Ben propped himself up on his elbow, an expression of confusion on his face. "I want you to come with me," he explained. "The apartment belongs to Snoke Industries so I'll have to clear out my stuff. Once we get settled, my parents want us to go visit them for a few days if that's okay? They'd like to get to know you."

Rey felt slightly overwhelmed, she hadn't even thought about leaving Finn and the city she'd always called home, behind. "I - I don't know," she said making him worry that she might be having second thoughts. "Would we have to live over there?"

Ben hadn't really given much consideration to the logistics but hoped they could find a solution agreeable to them both. At least she sounded unsure about the location rather than about being with him, which calmed his fears a little. She didn't appear to have much and he wanted to give her the world.

"SkyTech has offices in London and a research facility near Washington DC. I guess I'll be spending time at both. My parents live in DC and I'd like to see them occasionally. I thought, with you fixing engines and stuff, that there might be something to interest you at SkyTech. We can find a place here, though, if that's what you'd prefer."

Rey hooked her hands around his neck and pulled him in for a kiss. She liked the idea of putting her engineering skills to use. It wasn't as if she had much besides Finn to keep her in London. He would always be her dearest friend and she'd miss him terribly, but he would never be more than a phone call or FaceTime away.

"We'll work it out," she said between kisses. "And I would love to meet your parents."

Ben frowned, suddenly becoming aware of what introducing her to them would mean. "I should warn you, my mom is probably planning our wedding as we speak. My dad just wants to meet the girl who is crazy enough to fall for his son. He'll probably ask if I've knocked you up or something equally embarrassing."

"Don't worry," she teased kissing the tip of his nose. "Solo men seem to find me irresistible, I'm sure I'll have him wrapped around my little finger in no time."

Rey giggled as his lips found a sensitive spot between her neck and shoulder. He wasn't about to argue with her theory on Solo men, opting instead to give her more evidence in its favour.

The next morning, Ben awoke to find himself alone in bed. As he listened, he could just about make out the muffled sound of voices coming from the other room. Much as he didn't want to intrude on a private conversation, he desperately needed to use the bathroom. He pulled on his silk boxers and opened the bedroom door.

Finn raised his eyebrows at the sight of Ben's toned body, his eyes drifting downwards. "Damn, girl, I can see why he's a keeper."

Rey giggled as she watched her fiancé's pale face turn pink. "Morning, sexy," she grinned.

Ben couldn't help but smile in return until his bladder started to protest. "Bathroom?" he requested jiggling about.

Rey pointed to the door down the hall and he made a dash for it. At least she wasn't having second thoughts, he assured himself pushing away his lingering worries about her getting cold feet.

When he re-joined them in the kitchen, Finn held out his hand to him.

"Congratulations, man," he said as they shook hands. "You've got one hell of a girl there, I hope you know that."

"I do," Ben acknowledged. "She's the whole world to me."

Rey couldn't help swooning a little as he ducked down to kiss her.

Things started to heat up and Finn cleared his throat to remind them they weren't alone. "Don't stop on my account." He rolled his eyes. "Where can I find a rich sugar daddy, that's what I want to know?"

Ben soon found himself being pulled in the direction of the bedroom again, not that he was complaining. Full of goodwill to all, he thought of a way to help Rey's best friend. "Poe Dameron might be able to find you an opening - In SkyTech, I mean," he added. "I'll give you his number."

"Thanks, but I'm not sure I'm qualified," the younger man replied.

"Finn, Poe Dameron is a hot, former-astronaut and he's gay," Rey informed him. "Get that number called, now!"

With that, she shoved Ben back on her bed and kicked the door shut.

"I love it when you take charge," he said his excitement mounting.

She climbed on top of him. "I'm glad you've gone back to your birth name. Rey Ren sounds silly."

"I don't expect you to take my name when we marry, but if you do, you'll be Mrs. Rey Solo," Ben announced secretly hoping she would choose that option.

"It's a nice mouthful," she winked yanking his silk boxers off. "But then, so are you."

The way he kissed her challenged her previous assertion that life wasn't a fairytale. Rey mused, with a smile she hoped would never fade, maybe happy endings did exist after all.

 **THE END.  
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 **Thank you to you all for reading this fanfic. Particular thanks to all those who left reviews, it's great to get your feedback.**

 **Anyone who is familiar with Gwendy85's wonderful comic strip series "Excited Granddad Han" (which can be found on Tumblr and DeviantArt) might have noted my wink to it with Ben's warning to Rey that Han would ask if he'd knocked her up.**

 **I hope you all enjoyed reading this story and that it captured the spirit** **of Pretty Woman. I know the ending is a bit cheesy, but so was the end of that movie!**

 **Thanks again, and please do let me know what you thought of it - Mrs. P**


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